Shadow in the Forest
by Faeruy
Summary: Faleni Mahariel of the Sabrae clan is destined for great things; but all she knows at the moment is that she belongs to the clan, and she will fit in, somehow.  A linear series of shorts depicting the early life of a female Dalish Warden.
1. Hide and Seek

A small figure streaked past a low bush in the forest, it's leaves barely moving in the wake of it's flight. Bare feet made no sound as it sped through the forest. High roots and low branches presented no obstacles, the sprinter leapt over them without pausing. It faced determinedly forward, refusing to look back, running as if Fen'Harel himself was in pursuit. Time was growing short; the little one launched itself over an exposed root and dove headfirst into a patch of heavy undergrowth. The forest was still once more. In the distance one could hear a voice calling.

"Eighteen... nineteen... twenty! Ready or not, here we come!"

* * *

><p>Ashalle sat by the fire and worked on her latest carving. It was to be a pendant, but a simple one, meant for trading with the shemlen. She had a clear view of the log the children were using as home base for their game. Two young elf boys were standing on top of the log, counting at the top of their lungs. The rest of the len were nowhere to be seen; they had rushed into the forest the second the older boy, Fenarel, had started the countdown. When he finished, both he and Tamlen went off into the woods after the others. What they were playing may have been a shemlen game once, but "hunting" was good for the young Dalish. The 'hunters' developed keen senses and the ability to work as a team while their 'prey' learned how to conceal themselves and use the forest to their advantage. Traits like that kept the Dalish from being found, and those to small to protect themselves needed to be able to hide should the shemlen attack. It had been a long time since humans had struck against the Sabrae clan, but the possibility was never far away. Even life was precious to the Dalish, and if a shemlen game helped them keep it, it was all for the best.<p>

The two blond boys were back already with their first catches frog-marching ahead of them. That didn't take nearly as long as Ashalle thought it would, although the first-caught were among the smallest of the clan; they hadn't seen more than three summers. Tamlen and Fenarel were a good team, and they would be great hunters when they came of age, she thought. The captured prey were deposited on a log and the boys went back to the woods to find the rest of the children. She idly wondered how long it would take them to find Faleni and she went back her carving.

* * *

><p>It was several hours later when Tamlen and Fenarel creeped towards her with anxious looks on their faces. Fenarel elbowed the other boy in the ribs; Tamlen winced and stepped forward, his head bowed in shame.<p>

"Hahren Ashalle." His tone was full of respect and fear.

"Aneth ara da'len. What's wrong?"

"Emma'abelas Ashalle. Fenarel and I can't find Faleni." Tamlen scuffed the earth with one bare foot. Ashalle felt her heart stop, and she found herself unable to breathe.

"For how long?" She said when her tongue could move again. The lead boy looked over to Fenarel, who just nodded.

"Since the start of the game, actually." Tamlen said. He looked even more ashamed, his cheeks blushing crimson.

"For that long? But..." This couldn't be happening. They couldn't lose a child. She couldn't lose Faleni.

"The others got bored because we couldn't find her... so we started a new round... and, well, nobody's been able to find her. Tamlen and I decided to have another look around, but we haven't had any luck." Fenarel finally spoke, his voice wavered with unsurety.

"By the Creators! Have you notified Keeper Marethari?" Ashalle thought frantically. The Keeper has to know, what if the shemlan were responsible? A missing child could mean danger for the entire clan.

"We have Ashalle. She's sent out some hunters to look for her. But she told us that we must take responsibility and tell you ourselves." Fenarel answered.

"Ma serannas lethellin. I'm glad you told me. Let's hope they find her quickly." Ashalle was no hunter, as much as she wanted to go searching, there were no use for her skills in such a venture. But she ached to do something. Children were precious to the Dalish elvhen and Faleni doubly so to Ashalle. She had raised the girl from birth; Faleni's mother disappeared not long the girl was born and her father had died sometime before that. Ashalle herself never had any children and Faleni was the daughter she always wished for. To lose her because of a game was unthinkable. Ashalle mentally shook herself; such thoughts were unproductive. She went over to the Keeper's aravel to help with medical arrangements in case of injury. She prayed to Mythal that it wouldn't come to that.

Having discharged their duty to Ashalle, Tamlen and Fenarel set themselve the task of preparing for the hunters' return; setting out food and water as well new bundles of arrows should they be needed. The boys took their jobs seriously; they were honored to be helping the ranks they hoped to join one day, and trying to atone for losing Faleni. They looked alike, the two of them, could have been mistaken for each other if one didn't know better. The clan knew better. Tamlen was an energetic, restless boy. Mischief gleamed in his blue eyes and his short hair was shaggy from neglect. Fenarel was quieter, stronger, more steadfast. He took far more care in his manner and appearance than the impetuous Tamlen. They were fast friends, and seldom apart. Faleni, normally an unusually solitary child, would often join them in their adventures. Her disappearance was causing them almost as much consternation as it did Ashalle.

* * *

><p>It was getting dark when the hunters started to return. Ashalle's fear grew as each hunter returned empty handed, stopping only long enough to grab food and water from the boys before heading back into the woods. She noted that they didn't refill their quivers, although she wasn't sure whether that was a good or bad thing. She saw Paivel in the distance, heading towards the camp. She hadn't realized he had gone out. Their last storyteller had died recently, and since Paivel took his place he was released from hunting duties. Apparently his expertise was deemed necessary in the hunt; he was one of the best trackers in the clan.<p>

A small shadow following in his wake detached itself from the storyteller and came into view. Ashalle gave a cry when she recognized the elf with flame-red hair. The child spotted Ashalle and with a sob of her own, went tearing towards her. When she reached the older elf, she wrapped her arms around Ashalle and buried her face in her skirt. Ashalle knelt down and gathered the weeping girl into her arms.

"Shh, shh... da'vhenan, it's all right. Ma derath. What happened? Where was she?" She looked up at Paivel, who shrugged.

"Not far. Hiding in the woods. And I didn't find her, she found me. I was on my way back to camp when she jumped out at me. Asked me if I'd seen the other len, because she was waiting for them to find her. I told her the game was over, and now all the hunters were looking for her." At this Felani, rubbing her eyes with a grimy hand, looked up.

"I didn't know the _hunters_ were looking for me, mamae. They weren't calling my name."

"But you saw them go by?" Ashalle asked gently. The child nodded.

"Da'len, we're near a shemlen village. Nobody wanted to draw attention to ourselves. Or you." Paivel said sternly.

"Then why didn't they find me?"

"You hide too well, da'len." Faleni contemplated this statement for a second before yawning hugely. Ashalle picked up the sleepy child, and headed towards their aravel. "It's been a long day. Let's get some sleep, and in the morning, you can tell Tamlen and Fenarel that they need to work on their hunting skills." Faleni smiled slightly and let her head fall on Ashalle's shoulder.

Paivel looked over where Keeper Marethari stood in the shadows, watching the two retreat.

"Keeper. What do you think about all this? Turning the clan upside-down in search of a girl playing a game?"

"Storyteller, that da'len managed to keep herself hidden even from you. There's power there."

"Hmph." He snorted, "trouble, more likely."

"That too. But it has to find her first."


	2. Mother May I?

Faleni was bored. Keeper Marethari kept asking her questions and to her skeptical seven-summers-old mind, they were all pretty stupid.

"Do you ever have nightmares, da'len?"

"Yes."

"What about?"

"One time I thought the aravel was alive and was gonna eat me. An' this other time I dreamed that Hahren Paivel grew fangs, and..." The Keeper raised a hand to stop Faleni talking.

"How often do you have dreams like this?" Marethari sighed when the only response was a blank look. "Every night?"

"No." Faleni looked over to where the children were playing at hunting. She wished she could join them, but even if she wasn't stuck with the Keeper, she still wouldn't be allowed to play. The hunters were tired of being sent on search when the young ones couldn't find her, and the children all said she ruined the game anyway.

Marethari noticed the blue eyes staring at something in the distance, and she snapped to get the child's attention. The elf-girl startled, her eyes going wide with fright. She sat straight up and forced herself to pay attention to the Keeper.

"Now. Have you ever made something happen using only your mind?" The small girl looked confused, so Marethari continued. "Ever light a fire just by thinking about it?"

"No."

"What about moving a rock?"

"No."

"Healing a scratch just by touching it?" The girl shook her head.

"Make plants grow?" Faleni actually laughed out loud at that one.

"You're being silly, Keeper! The sun and dirt makes plants grow." Marethari sighed again. This was getting nowhere. She decided to switch tactics. She held out a small branch, coated with a slick substance.

"Faleni, will you please try to burn the stick. Just concentrate on it, and think about fire." The girl's blue eyes narrowed, glaring at the stick for a long moment. Her mouth scrunched up and her nose wrinkled, but no flames sprouted from the branch. The child slumped back.

"I can't do it, Keeper. I'm sorry. Am I in trouble?"

"What? No da'len. You're not in trouble. I was just hoping..." Marethari banished the thought. The girl looked so forlorn. The Keeper wanted to cheer her up. "Tell me, how do you manage to hide so well?"

"Dunno." Faleni shrugged, but she looked happier and possibly a bit smug. "I just do. I go where no one will see me, and I try not to make any noises." Marethari thought there had to be more to it than that, but it wasn't magic like she had hoped. Faleni was not destined to be a Keeper. She shooed the redheaded elf away with a wave of her hand. At the dismissal, Faleni was off like an arrow, bee-lining it back to her aravel where Ashalle was sitting, carving another pendant.

"What did the Keeper talk to you about, da'len?" Ashalle asked after the girl hugged her. Faleni sat down at the older woman's feet, leaning back against her knees.

"Boring stuff mamae. She wanted to know about my dreams." Faleni giggled. "She asked me to burn a stick with my mind." Ashalle was glad the child couldn't see the look of alarm on her face. Marethari suspected Faleni might be a mage? If it was true, the Keeper would take over the raising of the girl. She would still be part of the clan, but Faleni wouldn't be _hers_ and that made Ashalle's heart skip a beat.

"Did you manage it?"

"No." Ashalle slowly relaxed. Faleni wouldn't be Marethari's First. "Why did she think I could?"

"Perhaps she thought you inherited your father's gifts." Ashalle said casually, shaving of a thin peel off of the back of the pendant.

"Father?" Ashalle's knife stopped moving. "I have a father? Like Tamlen and Fenarel?"

"Everyone has a father, Faleni." Her mind raced frantically – she hadn't prepared for this; how could she prepare to tell a child about the politics, the pride, the absolute stubborness that left her an orphan? She was no storyteller; she could not make the truth into something palatable.

"But who was he?" The girl turned around and placed her head on the top of Ashalle's knees, looking up with large, curious eyes. Ashalle set her tools aside to fully concentrate on her daughter.

"He was our last Keeper, before Marethari – she was only his First, though she was his elder." Ashalle smiled. "He was stronger in magic, and he'd been with our clan much longer."

"I bet that made Marethari mad."

"Not really. Our Keeper knows her limitations, as should we all." Ashalle couldn't help throwing in a lesson, but Faleni only snorted, secure in her knowledge that she would of course excel at everything.

"What happened to him?" Creators be damned, the child was curious enough to uncover Dirthamen's secrets.

"He died. The shemlen caught him in the forest, and they killed him." Faleni looked fearful; Ashalle remembered that Paivel told some particularly gruesome tales about the shemlen even to the youngest of the clan. Faleni squirmed closer to Ashalle, who petted her red hair soothingly. "It was a long time ago, da'len. You look a bit like him, you know. The Keeper must have hoped you favored him in another way."

"What was his name?"

"Jurith. Keeper Jurith Mahariel."

"Mahariel, like me!" Faleni said proudly.

"Indeed." Ashalle could see him now, a tall, handsome elf, standing and smiling in his new Keeper robes, shaggy red hair flopping over his eyes. She remembered him showing her the staff he carved, and the pendant she gave him as a gift. If only...

"Mamae?" Faleni asked, a concerned look on her face.

"Yes da'len?"

"Why aren't you Mahariel too?" The edges of Ashalle's vision blurred, and she cursed her unthinking tongue. She could lie. Faleni didn't have to know the whole truth, not yet. But it wouldn't be fair to Vetya's memory. It wouldn't be fair to Faleni either. Ashalle gently placed her hands on Faleni's, helping her get to her feet. She pulled Faleni into her lap, her eyes never leaving the girl's. She raised one hand to cradle the child's face, and took a deep breath.

"I am not your mother, Faleni." The girl looked shocked; Ashalle could feel tears welling up in her own eyes. She didn't expect words out of her own mouth to hurt so much.

"Not... my mamae?" Faleni's voice was strangled, and Ashalle ached to take it all back, to make it all better. But it was too late, she had to go forward.

"In every way but one. I didn't give birth to you. Your mother... Vetya... was a hunter. She... she died with your father. I've had the care of you ever since." It wasn't completely true, but it might as well have been. Her body worked, but Vetya the person died when Jurith did.

"But..." Faleni leaned away from Ashalle's hand.

"Da'vhenan, I couldn't love you more if you were my own. Your mother and father were good people; I know they would've have wanted to be here with you, but they can't. They put you in my arms instead, and you're the best thing that's ever happened to me." Ashalle tried, pleading through the tears in her eyes, but she could feel Faleni pulling away. In desperation she grabbed the girl tightly, which only made Faleni kick and scream.

"You lied to me!" She shrieked, tears streaming down her face. "You're not my mamae!" Ashalle couldn't hold on any longer, and Faleni fell to her hands and knees on the ground, still screeching. "I hate you! I want my mamae!" Ashalle tried to help the her up, but the child only batted away her hands. The girl continued to cry and scream, and beat her fists against the ground. Finally Ashalle had had it.

"Faleni, enough! This behaviour is disgraceful. You are confined to the aravel until tomorrow. Go. Now!" Ashalle pointed towards their home. The crying stopped, and with a defiant glare, Faleni stood up and brushed herself off.

"Yes, Ashalle." Faleni said, angrily stamping off in the direction of Ashalle's hand. Ashalle stood there, shaking with frustration and anger. She felt a tap on the shoulder, and her hand came up to slap the elf behind her. Marethari ducked the blow.

"What just happened? The whole camp could hear her screaming!" The Keeper asked when she came up again.

"I told her about her parents."

"Oh. I take it the talk did not go well."

"By the Dread Wolf, could a talk like that ever go well?"

"I suppose not." Marethari rubbed the other woman's shoulder sympathetically. "Don't worry Ashalle, she's young, and tough. She'll forgive you soon." The Keeper gave her shoulder a squeeze and left her to her thoughts. Ashalle smiled weakly and then remembered something. Ashalle. Faleni called her Ashalle.

A tear rolled down her cheek as she felt her heart fall into a thousand tiny pieces.


	3. Leap Frog

"Tamlen!" squealed Faleni. "Stop it!"

"What? I'm not doing anything!" Tamlen quickly shoved his hands behind his back and pretended to look innocent. Faleni made a face at him. When she looked ahead again he poked her in the ribs. The elf girl shrieked and flailed, striking Tamlen in the head in the process.

"OW! Mamae, Faleni hit me!" Tamlen's mother, Divella, just ignored the two of them. He elbowed Faleni, who slapped him back, resulting in an all out war between the two of them.

"If you two don't stop it, I'll make both of you clean up after the halla." Ashalle glared at the two youngsters. The threat was effective. They trudged beside one of the halla-drawn aravels in silence, but not for long; they were soon back to poking and arguing with each other. Ashalle sighed. It was going to be a long migration.

Normally she and her adopted daughter lived and traveled with some of the elder members of the clan, most of whom had no immediate family members. However, Divella had only recently given birth and needed extra help on the journey. It was common practice for an unattached female to join families with newborns and Divella specifically asked for Ashalle and Faleni. Ashalle suspected that Divella wanted a distraction for Tamlen as much as she needed another pair of hands. At the moment, that plan was met with limited success.

"Mamae!" Tamlen whined again. Both Divella and Ashalle turned around to find that Faleni had jumped on the older boy's back and was pulling at his ears and giggling. Divella laughed at Tamlen's woeful expression while Ashalle just rolled her eyes.

"Why don't you two go find Fenarel? His aravel's not to far back, and I'm sure he'd enjoy the company." Big grins appeared on both of their faces at the mention of their friend. The older boy had just started serious hunter training under his father and had less time for his friends. Tamlen and Faleni were both a few months away from those kind of lessons but joining Fenarel in his wouldn't hurt any of them.

"Gee-yup halla, let's go!" Faleni kicked her heel into Tamlen's hip. He made a face, but turned around anyway and went running off with Faleni still on his back.

"Gharth will be mad at us for for saddling him with all three." Divella said, still chuckling.

"No doubt. But you know Tamlen practically worships the man; they'll behave around Gharth." Ashalle's mouth quirked. "Or at least they better. I'll tan Faleni's hide otherwise."

"At least we have a moment of peace anyway. I was afraid they'd wake up the little one." Divella waved a hand towards her back, where a small baby was strapped into a carry-rig.

"Are you sure you don't want to ride in the aravel?"

"I'm sure. The weather in this country is so awful; I want to enjoy the sun while I can." It was a surprisingly nice day; the sun was bright and warm and a soft breeze drifted gently through the forest. Most of the clan was walking besides the aravels rather than riding; a holiday from their normal chores.

"If you need me to carry him for a while, let me know." Ashalle said gently; trying not to betray the longing she felt. It had been a long time since she held a babe in her arms.

"Be careful offering that, or you'll end up carrying him all the way to the Arlathvhen." Divella teased. "Speaking of, do you think Marethari will choose a First?'

"She'd better. It's not right for her to go so long without an apprentice." This migration was no ordinary one; before they found their new campsite, there was the Arlathvhen to attend. Every ten years all of the clans got together in a remote location. There they would swap stories, histories, artifacts, valuables and occasionally, even the elvhen themselves, if there was need enough. In this case there was; should something happen to Marethari, Sabrae clan would be without a Keeper.

"Too true. It's been what? Nine years?" Nine years since Jurith was killed. "And none of the len have shown any mage talent." Divella let out a resigned sigh. The lack of potential Keepers was regrettable, but expected. There was very little mage-blood running through the Sabraes; all of their Keepers for a few generations had been born in other clans. "I'm just glad Tamlen doesn't have the potential. Creators, he's bad enough as it is. If he was a mage? Our whole clan would be overrun with demons in two days." Divella said with mock-exasperation and then chuckled softly.

"With Faleni it would be in a few hours." Ashalle joined in, laughing loudly.

"And here I was, hoping that Tamlen had found a good influence."

"Divella, you thought wrong." Just then they heard shouts from further down the line of aravels. Someone, actually several someones, were shouting a name over and over again.

"Faleni! Faleni!" Ashalle could make out Gharth's baritone among the higher pitches of the younger boys. She rubbed her forehead with her hand.

"By Fen'Harel..." She swore quietly and raised her eyes. She looked at the top of the aravel and thought she caught a glimpse of red. "Faleni! Get down from there, right now!" The girl's mop of red hair peeked over the curved roof.

"Ahh, but Ashalle..."

"Don't you 'but Ashalle' me. Get down!" She saw the child roll her blue eyes, and then slide down the sloping roof towards the sides. Ashalle winced a little as the Faleni landed into a roll. The resilience of youth. The girl came up, walking alongside Ashalle, completely unrepentant. Divella was laughing behind them; Ashalle ignored her.

"What were you doing up there? Why didn't you stay with Tamlen and Fenarel?"

"Hahren Gharth wanted us to practice running, jumping, and climbing. He said it would build up strength." And also wear the children down. Gharth was a smart man. "He did say we were only supposed to stay on one aravel. I guess I forgot." She said nonchalantly. "I wanted to see how far I could get without falling!"

"Well you didn't fall and die, da'len, good for you. For your achievement, you now have the great honor of picking up halla dung." Ashalle said, smiling.

" But Ashalle..." The girl whined, stamping her feet in protest.

"No buts. You remember what I told you about disappearing without telling anyone."

"But I didn't..." Ashalle shot her a stern look, and Faleni stopped quickly. The flame-haired elf heaved a massive sigh, and slunk off slowly in search of a shovel. Divella had transferred the baby to her arms, and had a mirthful smile on her face.

"You're sure you want me and Faleni to travel with you?" Ashalle asked.

"Absolutely. Here; would you hold him? I have to go talk to Korim." She deposited the wide-awake elf babe into Ashalle's arms, and practically skipped around to the front of their aravel. Ashalle looked down into the curious face of the babe.

"Don't ever grow up." She said. He only cooed in response.

* * *

><p><em>AN - I apologize for the delay; work has gotten crazy. Ah well, I said updates would probably be slow. I'm thinking of changing the title of the story... I don't think it's going to fit the way I thought it would, but I won't until I think of something better. _


	4. Sardines

Faleni had never seen so many of the elvhen in her life. Paivel had told them stories about shemlen cities; people and buildings both crammed together like rabbits in a den. She couldn't imagine them being more crowded than this. Elves were everywhere, mingling in small groups, listening to a storyteller by the campfire, trading amongst themselves and the craftmasters. Aravels surrounded the perimeter, some plain but beautifully carved, others as colorful and ornate as a bird of paradise. She clutched Ashalle's hand tightly, eyes wide with wonder. Tamlen was chatting animatedly with his parents ahead of her, occasionally pointing out a particularly gaudy aravel.

They followed the lead aravel through the camp walking first past the statue of Fen'Harel, this one many times larger than the one her clan had. Faleni wondered which clan it belonged to. There was a hole in the perimeter at the far end of the camp; the halla were heading towards it. Ashalle waved her free hand at a few of the other elves passing by, but her face grew hard when they passed by one of the more ornate sets of aravels. She tugged at Ashalle's sleeve, and threw a questioning look at her, but Ashalle expression changed to a bright smile when she looked down at the girl.

"What is it da'len?" She asked. Faleni was about to ask what had made Ashalle angry, but she suddenly wasn't sure about what she had just seen, or that Ashalle would even tell her. She thought quickly, trying to come up with a different question.

"Is this all the elvhen?" She asked. She couldn't imagine there would be more, but Ashalle shook her head.

"No, we're not all met." She scanned the campsite. "There should be at least two more, I believe. Alerion and Nehn'revas aren't here yet. Certainly a lot more of us than you expected isn't there?" Faleni nodded solemnly. The Keeper's aravel had just pulled into place, and Maren was already busy unhooking the halla and leading them to the communal pen. Tamlen ran back to Faleni and grabbed her wrist.

"Mamae says it's alright if I go exploring, come with me!" He started to drag her off, then stopped when Ashalle glared at him. "Sorry, hahren. May Faleni come look around the Arlathvhen with me?"

"Yes Tamlen." Barely were the words out of her mouth and they were off. Faleni grasped her friend's hand tightly. Tamlen was bigger than her, and so much braver; he didn't seem to mind the mass of people around them, he just dragged her right through.

"Where are we going?" She asked, stumbling trying to keep up with his longer legs.

"We're gonna see everything! But first I want to check out the bor'assan and dar'misaan."

"Why? You're not even an apprentice yet." While all children played with wooden swords and toy bows, it wasn't until they started their apprenticeship that they were allowed steel and ironbark – the material was too precious and too dangerous to allow otherwise.

"I will be soon! And so will you lethallan. It can't hurt to look. Papae says that there he's seen weapons from other clans that are even better than Master Ilen's!"

"That's just not possible."

She was loath to admit that Tamlen was right when they looked at the weapons made by the other craftmasters. Master Ilen's were indeed of a very high quality, but the daggers from one of the clans were the most beautiful thing that Faleni had ever seen. She picked one up, and held it in her palm, tracing the intricate design of the hilt with a reverent finger.

"Careful da'len. These aren't the wooden toys you and your friends play with." An older elf on the other side of the table put a gentle hand on her wrist. Faleni glared at him.

"I've held knives before, Hahren. My guardian makes jewelry – she's been teaching me how to whittle." Faleni thought it was prudent not to mention just how many times she managed to cut herself, or just how little she cared for Ashalle's craft. "I was just looking."

"This isn't a whittling knife da'len – it's made for a real hunter. But no matter, you like the dar'misu?" He asked. Faleni nodded. "It's one of my own making."

"It's beautiful. I'd love to have a dar'misu like this when I become a hunter."

"Well, at the next Arlathvhen, if you still wish it, I will share my weapons with you. Just come see old Master Varethorn."

"Ma serannas, Master Varethorn." She handed the dagger back to the elder hilt first. "My name is Faleni Mahariel."

"Dareth shiral, Faleni. And you..." Varethorn turned to Tamlen, who was examining some of the bows. The boy looked up sharply. "Do you fancy any of the bor'assan?"

"They're really nice, Hahren. I could be the greatest hunter of the Sabrae clan with something like this."

"Then I offer the same deal I gave your friend da'len." The old master made a small mock-bow. Tamlen returned the bow, somewhat more sincerely.

"Ma serannas, Hahren." Tamlen turned to Faleni. "Come on, there's some good leathers I want to check out. There may even be some pretty robes for you too..." He added as an afterthought. Faleni made a face. Something over his shoulder caught her eye, and she shoved past him. One of the last clans had just arrived, although whether it was Nehn'revas or Alerion, she couldn't tell. What caught her eye was the elf at the tail end of the aravel train; a tall, dusky-skinned male wearing leather armor that had been dyed a dark green, much like the scouts in her clan. His face had been tattooed with the mark of Ghilan'nain, the mother of the halla. This particular elf had a large gray wolf trotting at his side. Faleni had seen dead wolves that the hunters brought back from camp, but nobody in her clan had ever thought to tame one. Apparently neither had anyone else; the wolf was getting a lot of stares and pointed fingers. Some of the other elves were whispering excitedly amongst themselves. One of the Keepers, a very old, balding man went white at the sight of the wolf.

"Tamlen, look!" She pointed over her friend's shoulder. He turned around and looked at the big gray beast.

"Creators! He's huge! His pelt would be worth a fortune!"

"Is that all you think about? I don't think they plan on killing the wolf. It looks... friendly." Or at least Faleni thought so. It didn't look like it was hungry for little elf children. She thought it actually looked a little scared; maybe it didn't like being around so many people either.

"Wolves aren't friendly." Tamlen snorted, but he looked unsure. "Why would anyone tame a wolf?"

"Why not? What I wanna know is; how? Do you think he would teach me?"

"Couldn't hurt to ask. Paivel says that's the whole point of the Arlathvhen; to share knowledge among the clans. He might think you're too little, though." Faleni stuck out her tongue at him. "But go up there and ask him anyway." Tamlen nudged her with an elbow. When she didn't move, he sighed and took her shoulders, propelling her forward towards the line of aravels. The dusky elf saw their strange approach, and lagged behind with his wolf.

"Aneth ara." Tamlen said cheerily, still behind the girl. "My friend and I like your wolf."

"Aneth ara, da'len. You like Dorf? Careful, he's not as tame as he looks. He may follow me, but don't let that fool you." The dusky elf casually patted the beast, who growled good-naturedly. "He's a killer."

"A killer's a good friend for a scout." Faleni ventured. "How did you get him?"

"Time, luck, and a little know-how." He knelt down to look the children straight in the eyes. "There's a trick to talking to wild animals."

"Could I learn it?" The man looked at her speculatively. Faleni drew up to her full height and tried to look mature and responsible.

"What do you think, Dorf?" The man said, ruffling the wolf's fur. Dorf gave a short bark in response. "That's what I think too. Da'len, I'm teaching a few of the hunters and scouts the language of the animals after the competition tomorrow. If you really want to learn, you should come to the Nehn'revas campsite then."

"Ma serannas!" Faleni's thanks barely came out a whisper in her excitement. She grabbed Tamlen's hand, and went racing along the line of slow-moving aravels.

"Wh-where are w-we-e goin-ng?" Tamlen stuttered, tripping over himself as she dragged him bobbing and weaving through the mass of elves. In her joy, she forgot her fear of the crowd; they were no more than trees in the forest.

"Back to our camp! I have to tell Ashalle!"

"But what about the rest of the Arlathvhen?" He was hindering her speed, so she let go of his hand. Tamlen stumbled, but kept his footing, and started to sprint on his own behind her.

"We're here a full fortnight, we have plenty of time to see your stupid leathers." She shouted cheerily. The adults payed no attention to the racing children, except to get out of their way as they ran by. Faleni dodged in between two moving aravels and Tamlen lost sight of her. He tried to follow her path but he couldn't find her on the other side.

"Faleni?" He yelled. When there was no answer he stopped running and sighed. She'd turn up again, she always did. Tamlen walked slowly back to camp.

Faleni, meanwhile, had spotted the campsite from earlier; the one that made Ashalle's face go stony. Curiosity overcame her, and she meandered slowly over, trying not to draw any attention to herself. It seemed to be working as she got within spitting distance of the strange camp and no one took any notice of the little red-headed elf.

"Did you see Sabrae come in?" Asked one pale blonde female to another. The one who spoke wore a plain dark blue dress, the other was in the robes of a Keeper. At the mention of her clan, Faleni perked up. She continued to walk slowly towards the camp, her whole body focused on the two speakers.

"Yes. They're set up at the far end of camp, thank the Creators. It would likely come to bloodshed if our site was anywhere near their's."

"Even after all these years?"

"Not that many. I've been told they're still looking for a new First for Keeper Marethari." The blonde Keeper sniffed. "Well, it won't be from the Uthergal clan, that's for sure."

"It's not like we have any mage-talented len, Keeper. How are Cevhan's studies coming by the way?"

"Oh he's doing just fine. His healing spells are almost stronger than mine now..."

They continued to discuss the unknown Cevhan at some length, and though Faleni hoped they would go back to the far more interesting subject of her own clan, they never did. She grew bored listening to the two women gab and she melted back into the crowd, slightly disappointed. Faleni still wasn't any closer to figuring out why Ashalle didn't like the clan; except that Uthergal apparently wasn't too fond of Sabrae either. But she had time to figure it out. The Arlathvhen had just begun.


	5. What's the Time, Mr Wolf?

_A/N: For those of you following along, sorry for the very infrequent updates - between life and a number of other projects, writing is tough. I have every intention of seeing this thing all the way through. On another note, we're definitely going to be in the Arlathvhen for a bit; there's a lot going on there. As always, I don't really own any of these characters except the ones I made up - thank you Bioware!_

* * *

><p>The purpose of the Arlathvhen was to exchange knowledge and artifacts; a job for the Keepers and their Firsts. This generally left the rest of the Dalish at loose ends and circling each other like wary dogs – a situation that invariably led to quarrels, fights and occasionally bloodshed. Over the years, the elvhen had developed ways to entertain themselves and let off some tension while the Keepers were busy discussing lore. Contests of skill, dancing, storytelling, and demonstrations were planned for every day of the meeting, ostensibly to further the exchange of knowledge and lore, but really just to distract the clannish and crowd-shy Dalish. It wasn't successful in preventing all of the fighting, but at least there hadn't been any deaths in the past century.<p>

Faleni didn't know all that, and she wouldn't have cared anyway. All she cared was that the archery contest was about to start, and already it looked like it was going to be an exciting match. The representative for Sabrae was Junar, a young hunter who had only recently gone through the vallaslin ritual. The black-blue tattoo around his eyes was practically glowing with newness. He surprised everyone when he beat the older and more experienced Haysha for the right to represent the clan and he was anxious to prove that it wasn't a fluke. The young brunette elf shifted nervously in the middle of a long row of elves, anxious for the match to begin. The contestants represented a wide variety of elvhen; from the very pale, short elves who roamed the Anderfels to the dark elves in Llomerryn, from the oldest hahren to some not much older than Junar.

Faleni sat next to Ashalle on a wooden bench behind the contestants. Ashalle was talking to a male elf sitting on the other side of her; he seemed to be from the Ralaferin clan, and his wife Danyla was their representative. On Faleni's other side sat Tamlen and Fenarel, who were busy poking each other and arguing about who was going to win. Tamlen insisted that Junar would win; Fenarel scoffed at that; he thought the silver-haired woman from the Elgarlen clan would take it all. They were still arguing when the competition started, but Faleni shot them a death glare which shut them up.

The targets were man-shaped training dummies with small red circles painted on them. The first row of dummies were set about twenty yards away, with more rows going further back. The last row had the dummies strung up on a line between two trees, elves standing to either side would pull the rope back and forth to create a moving target. The goal was accuracy and speed; the archers needed to let off as many arrows as possible within the time limit and hit as many of the targets as possible. Red circles netted more points, as did the ones further back; with a large bonus going to an elf who put at least one arrow in each dummy. The first elf stood up to the line; a black-haired man who bore the mark of Falon'din and carried a plain longbow. The arbiter of the contest turned over the hourglass, and before the audience could blink, there was an arrow sprouting from one of the red circles.

One by one each elf took his turn at the line. All were very good – Dalish training emphasized the bor'assan, and these elvhen were the best of the best – but only a few managed to get an arrow in every dummy, and so far only the silver-haired woman had managed to get all them all in the red circles. Halfway through the competition was Junar's turn. Faleni scooted closer to Ashalle, who put an arm around the young girl. Faleni's blue eyes never left Junar. Now that it was his turn, the archer's previous nervousness had disappeared entirely. He took a deep breath and drew back his bow. The judge flipped the timer, and the arrow left his bow with a loud twang. Junar was a methodical shooter – he started with the back row of moving dummies and worked his way forward. Every hit managed to land in a red circle. Speed, however, was not Junar's strong suit; as the pile of sand at the bottom grew larger than the one on top, there was still plenty of untouched targets. Tamlen and Fenarel stopped arguing and leaned forward, silently egging their fellow Sabrae on. Faleni had Ashalle's hand in a death grip. With just a few granules left and two dummies, Junar did the unthinkable; he pulled two arrow out of his quiver, and loosed them at the dummies. Faleni shut her eyes tightly; she couldn't bear to watch.

The audience around her groaned. Faleni slowly opened one eye. One dummy had an arrow in the head but the other was bare – the arrow intended for it was stuck in the ground in front. All of the sand was in the bottom of the hourglass. Tamlen sighed heavily and sunk down in his seat. Fenarel did the same, though he was much less upset as it meant that his prediction was more likely to be correct. The Sabrae clan looked fairly dejected as the next archer, the Raleferin woman, stepped up to shoot. The rest of the match was uneventful and Faleni payed scant attention to the remaining contestants. At the end of it all, Fenarel was right and the Elgarlen clan got top honors. Junar pulled a fairly respectable fifth place – beating out even some who had hit all of the dummies. That didn't satisfy Faleni however, and she left the archery pit dejected.

"Why so sad, da'len? Junar did very well today." Ashalle chirped, walking blithely behind the sullen girl.

"He didn't win." Faleni grumped. Ashalle laughed.

"He was competing against the best of the Dalish; to do as well as he did was very impressive."

"I would've won."

"And maybe next Arlathvhen you will and be the pride of Sabrae. In the meantime, Junar has not disappointed our clan, and we beat Uthergal, so we should all be very happy for him."

"Why don't you like Uthergal?" Faleni figured she wouldn't have a better opportunity to solve the mystery.

"Da'len, it's complicated." Ashalle said quietly. Faleni's mood sunk further. Nothing good ever came of the words 'It's complicated'. "It's nothing that concerns you. The feud between our clans go back a long time."

"But how come we fight each other? Aren't we all Dalish?" Faleni persisted.

"Do you get along with everyone in Sabrae?" Faleni shook her head. "Well there you go. Now I believe Paivel has a lesson for you and the other len." Ashalle firmly ended the line of questioning. But the mention of a lesson reminded Faleni of something.

"But Ashalle.."

"No. Back to camp with you." Ashalle gave her a gentle push forward and started back towards camp. Faleni walked, looking towards the Nehn'revas site. She saw a crowd starting to gather around the elf with the wolf. She bit her lip nervously and glanced at Ashalle. Her guardian would never let her miss Paivel's lesson. But Ashalle's gaze was fixed forward, she wasn't looking at Faleni anymore. Faleni slowed her pace until she was several steps behind and when she thought it was safe, she dashed off in the opposite direction, towards the wolf-tamer.

The crowd had thickened considerably by the time Faleni reached the Nehn'revas camp, making it impossible for her to see what was going on. After trying unsuccessfully to shove her way to the front, she dropped down to all fours and crawled in between the legs of the adults. A short bark brought her head straight up, and she stared down the nose of the large gray wolf. He started to growl and Faleni was like a rabbit before a fox; stunned and staring into the wolf's golden eyes.

"Dorf!" Came the sharp command from behind. The wolf huffed, and broke eye contact with Faleni, circling back around to the dusky elf in charge of the meeting. Faleni looked up to see every eye upon her. Her face flushed crimson, very nearly matching her hair. She got to her feet and busily brushed herself off, taking care not to meet anyone's eyes. The speaker cleared his throat to get everyone's attention.

"This len here has demonstrated a very important first step in gaining the trust of an animal, although I very much doubt she meant to do it." He chuckled softly, and the rest of the adults surrounding her joined in. Faleni's blush grew deeper. "While she was clearly scared out of her mind, she did not break eye contact with Dorf, and she did not run. Breaking eye contact brands you as an inferior animal, and running marks you as prey. If you wish to run with the pack, you must show yourself to be their equal at least. Now of course, I'm talking rather specifically about wolves here; they are a social, intelligent animal, and so are actually fairly easy to befriend. It is possible to work with other animals and later I will go over some basic techniques for other species, but the bulk of my lesson will focus on wolves."

By now the other Dalish had all but forgotten the little girl. Faleni was starting to think this sounded a lot like one of Paivel's lessons, except that Paivel never taught her how to tame a wolf. So despite the fact that she didn't quite understand everything the Nehn'revas elf was saying, she listened as hard as she could. The elf, who's name she later learned was Vhermas, went through a vast array of animal behaviors, and what they meant. He discussed the importance of learning an animal's language and the best way to observe them without being seen. He detailed techniques for training an animal to certain tasks, and how best to win them over. The whole thing took many hours and Faleni found herself nodding off a few times. At the end of it all, Vhermas had the hunters come up one by one to work with Dorf. The first one to go up was Haysha, from Faleni's own clan, she realized with a start. If Haysha knew that she was skipping Paivel's lesson, she'd be in big trouble. Faleni quickly went towards the back of the line, and tried to hide in the clump of other, much taller elves.

Haysha's turn with Dorf seemed to go very well, she was walking away smiling and with a jaunty bounce in her step. Faleni tried to disappear further into the crowd as Haysha came towards her. Just as the huntress walked past her she deliberately caught the small girl's gaze and slowly winked. Faleni's secret was safe for now.

Before long it was Faleni's chance with the gray wolf. She stood quietly and let the wolf sniff all over her. She shivered when his cold, wet nose touched her skin, but the wolf didn't seem to notice. The wolf snuffed, and looked back to Vhermas. This was Faleni's chance.

"Dorf!" She commanded, trying to sound as much like Vhermas as possible. She was pleased to see the wolf look back at her. "Sit." She said. The wolf didn't do anything.

"Sit." She said again. The wolf turned it's head quizzically. Faleni tried another command. "Down." Still nothing. Faleni bit her lip; since it had started to tremble slightly, and she turned her blue eyes to Vhermas.

"Da'len, I think Dorf sees you're only a child. Perhaps you would have better luck if you ask nicely? He won't listen to an arrogant pup, but he might be happy to help a polite friend." His smile was kind, and Faleni drew courage from it. She took a deep breath, and started again.

"Dorf," she said slowly. "sit, please?" The wolf sat back on his haunches with a click. Faleni was so excited she jumped and whooped loudly, red hair falling forward into her face. Vhermas laughed along with her as did some of the other elves still waiting to work with the wolf. While she was still occupied in her joy, Vhermas clicked his tongue again, and the big wolf stood up and padded over to his side. Only then did the dusky elf address Faleni again.

"Da'len, you will be a good companion to the animals one day, but you must work on it. If I were you, I'd start with half-grown cubs and baby birds – it will be easier to gain their respect. Do you understand, da'len?" Faleni nodded. "Good. Now tell me, what is your name, and what clan do you hail from?"

"I'm Faleni Mahariel, from Sabrae. Anetha ara hahren."

"Aneth ara Mahariel." A very pale hunter still waiting for his turn looked up at the name Mahariel, startled. His eyes narrowed at the small girl skipping merrily away back to the Sabrae campsite.


	6. Keep Away

_**A/N**: I've been suffering from severe writer's block - this chapter was originally in one direction, but I wasn't feeling it, and it was difficult to write. But then I read something on **Dragon Age Writer's Corner **forum, and something clicked, which meant a serious rewrite of this chapter, and for the next few chapters as well. It means I'm going to be in the Arlathvhen longer than I had planned, but I think the story will be better for it. Thank you **karebear** for breaking me out of my block, in a roundabout way. Updates are still going to be slow - 3 jobs is a bloody lot to handle._

* * *

><p>Paivel had been ranting at Faleni for awhile now; her mind had retreated from the onslaught ages ago. Occasionally she would make a noncommittal noise or nod in agreement to indicate that she was listening, though she no longer had any idea what he was saying. She was trying to figure out if she could convince Tamlen to go searching for a wolf cub with her. Maybe Fenarel would come too if she was lucky. She didn't want too many people, but Fenarel was older and had more training than either her or Tamlen, so he could be useful.<p>

"...and you'll be exiled if you're not careful da'asha!" Paivel finished, red in the face. Faleni brought her mind back to the present, somewhat confused as to how the storyteller ended up with exile.

"Really hahren? Exile? But I only missed one lesson." she asked, quite genuinely. It didn't seem to help matters.

"Impudent len'alas! For missing the lesson, you are to report to me after supper. My aravel needs cleaning. Perhaps you'll learn something about duty, if nothing else." Faleni bowed her head, but made no reply. "Is that clear?"

"Yes hahren." she mumbled, chastised. Paivel hrumphed, and left her standing in the middle of camp. Tamlen and Fenarel came running up, looking over their shoulders to make sure Paivel wasn't watching them.

"How much trouble are you in lethallan?" Fenarel asked.

"A lot."she replied dejectedly. "I have to clean his aravel." Fenarel winced in sympathy.

"Why did you miss lessons today anyway?" Tamlen inquired curiously.

"Remember that wolf? I went to go learn how to make friends with him." Both boys went wide-eyed.

"Did you do it?" Tamlen asked breathlessly. Faleni nodded excitedly, and her friends' eyes got even wider. "Wow!"

"But Vhermas told me that if I want to be really good, I need to find a pup, since I'm so little. You guys wanna come with me? Tamlen and Fenarel exchanged uneasy glances.

"Sorry lethallan," Tamlen said. "Fenarel and I are supposed to help Garth practice for the dar'misu throwing competition tomorrow."

"Could I help too?" She asked. If she couldn't go searching today, maybe they would come tomorrow. At least she could have some fun with them in the meantime. But her hopes were dashed when Fenarel shook his head.

"Papae really only needs two people, and you're too short anyway. You could watch though." The older boy offered helpfully. Faleni drooped a little. She didn't want to just sit and watch while the boys got to run around and do important things. Tamlen took note of her displeasure; he shrugged at Fenarel and patted the girl's shoulder awkwardly.

"Ma'abelas Faleni." He and Fenarel scampered off towards towards the archery range; which was now full of a dozen or so elves practicing with shiny daggers. Faleni was left alone in the Sabrae camp once again, this time at loose ends. She supposed she could go to Ashalle, but Ashalle was likely to be just as mad at her as Paivel was, and she didn't want to add another punishment to her roster yet. Before she could figure out what to do, there was a hissing sound behind her. She turned around, confused, to see a blond male elf beckoning to her. She thought she recognized him as one of the hunters at Vhermas's demonstration.

"Da'len, come here." Faleni looked around to make sure he didn't mean some other elf child, and then walked towards the elf, who was fidgeting nervously.

"Andaran atish'an hahren. What can I do for you?" She asked politely.

"Is your name Mahariel?"

"Faleni Mahariel yes, hahren."

"I am Sular Tumilin. Were you at the Nehn'revas camp just now?" Faleni nodded. "What did you think of Dorf?"

"I think he's wonderful. I want a wolf like him to follow me around all the time!" She said eagerly. "Do you like wolves too?"

"I do, Faleni. In fact, I was just going to go searching for one of my own. I came over because I wondered if you would like to come with me." The blond elf got down to one knee to face her at her level. He looked expectantly at her, but there was an odd cast to his eyes,one Faleni didn't recognize. She suddenly felt a little uneasy.

"Why?"

"Because I didn't see you with an adult at the Nehn'revas camp. And I overheard you talking to the other len. I figured that a girl your age would be safer searching in the woods with a trained hunter, than trying to lure a wolf all by herself." Sular spoke calmly and evenly, and his reasoning made sense to Faleni. She really didn't want to go searching by herself, and a hunter would be even better at tracking than her friends. And they were all Dalish, weren't they? They were family.

"Ma'serannas, Sular," she said simply. The elf stood up and held out his hand, big as a bear paw. She put her much smaller hand in it, and it was almost comforting the way his hand closed around hers. "Do I need to bring anything?"

"No da'len. I think I've got everything we need." The two of them walked away from the Sabrae camp, towards the wilderness ahead. No one one paid any attention to the two as the left the main grounds of the Arlathvhen.


	7. Truth or Dare

"Come on mafelas!" Faleni yelled over her shoulder. She and Sular were making their way through a very thick part of the forest and Faleni's small size made it easier to weave through the undergrowth. The older elf winced several meters behind her, his foot stuck in a root.

"Quiet da'len. You'll scare everything away if you keep shouting." he said, hopping a little to free himself. "And if you don't slow down, you'll miss the tracks."

"But we're still really close to camp. All of the wolves will be scared anyway." Faleni whined, but she slowed her pace enough for Sular to catch up.

"How much do you know about tracking?"

"I know a lot!" she said indignantly.

"Don't lie da'len. You do it badly. You're far too young to know 'a lot'. Meanwhile, I've been one of the best scouts in my clan since before you were born." He pointed to something on the ground. "Maybe you ought to listen to me." Faleni was confused, but she knelt down to examine the spot Sular was pointing at. It was a small patch of leaves on the ground. She looked back at Sular, who just continued to grin and point at the spot. She studied the spot as hard as she could, until finally she saw it; the leaves were pressed as if they had been stepped on and one or two were almost shredded from claws digging in. A print. And she would have missed it entirely. Faleni could feel the blush creeping up her cheeks.

"Abelas hahren." she said. Sular patted her shoulder and took the lead, picking his way slowly through through the forest in search of the next print. Faleni followed along behind; she paid close attention to how he moved, and she did her best to emulate him. The blond elf was light on his feet. His first few steps were hesitant but as he picked up the trail he began to move with the confidence of a stalking cat. Faleni couldn't see most of the tracks he was seeing; though she tried, her eyes just weren't as quick as his.

"Is it a fresh trail we're following Sular?" she asked after they had been searching for a while with no animals in sight.

"Somewhat. It wasn't made today, but it's new enough. Chances are we'll cross a fresher one – or if we're really lucky this will lead to their den. Unlike us, the wolf tribes around here have permanent homes." Sular chuckled darkly. Faleni didn't know why he thought that was funny. According to Paivel, it was a tragedy that the elvhen were driven out of their lands and forced to wander the world, hated by everyone. They continued on in silence; getting further and further from the Arlathvhen. Sular had changed directions so many times that she was hopelessly lost. She told Sular so, but he just shrugged.

"Then don't go too far from me. But here's a tip, da'len; our camp is next to a river – it has to be with so many of the elvhen here. If you get lost, find the river and head upstream. Or you can retrace your steps. I daresay you've left a decent enough trail."

"I haven't left any kind of a trail." Faleni snitted. Sular looked askance at her. "I haven't!" Sular stopped his search for tracks, and went back to look behind Faleni. His eyes widened in surprise.

"Well, you'd better stick to finding the river, Faleni. You pick things up quickly. Or is this something your clan already taught you?" he asked, cocking his head curiously. She shrugged.

"I'm really good at not being found."

"I'm sure you are." he said, mussing her red hair playfully. "It's a good skill to have." Having seen that Faleni wasn't entirely unskilled, he made a point of slowing down his pace so that the girl would get a chance to see what he was seeing. Faleni was starting to see the pattern of disturbances; broken branches, shallow scratches, fresh dirt on top of old. Once she managed to spot something before Sular did, and was so excited by her discovery that he once again had to remind her that they were after some very shy animals.

After awhile they came upon a break in the woods and Sular frowned slightly. Faleni could hear rushing water and through the thinning trees they could see a small river carving a path through the forest. They followed the tracks right up to the bank and then stopped. Sular signaled Faleni to wait and leapt across to the other side. After combing up and down for a few minutes, he came back to Faleni, plunking down on the bank with a sigh.

"I think we've lost the trail da'len," he said as the water ran over his bare feet.

"Aren't we going to look for another one?"

"I'd like to sit for a spell if you don't mind. We'll try again in a bit." He closed his eyes, and didn't speak again. The elf girl stood fidgeting for a moment before plopping herself down next to him. She stuck her feet in the water and shivered at the cold.

"Sular..." she said, after what felt like an hour of silence. "What clan are you from?"

"Uthergal." he said.

"Uthergal? Oh." Faleni suddenly felt very nervous. Did he know where she was from? What would he do if he found out? What would Ashalle do if she found out Faleni was with an Uthergal hunter?

"Oh?" Sular opened his eyes and squinted at her. "Why oh?" Ashalle could be dealt with later; first thing's first.

"Did... did you know I'm from Sabrae?" She cringed. The moment of truth; she just hoped that he wouldn't do something horrible to her.

"Yes da'len." he said softly. His eyes grew dark, and with the tattoo of Falon'din covering his entire face, he looked more than a little imposing.

"I thought Uthergal and Sabrae hated each other. Don't you hate me?"

"Tell me about yourself, Faleni Mahariel." he asked, ignoring the question entirely.

"I...but... what do you want to know?" she asked, startled by the abrupt change in subject.

"Everything, but let's start with something easy. How old are you?"

"I'm nine. I was born in the spring."

"Who are your parents?"

"Umm... my papae was Keeper Jurith Mahariel, and my mamae was..." she wracked her brain, trying to remember the name. "Vetya! That's it! That's what Ashalle told me!" Sular's face flickered through several unreadable expressions, but finally settled on a look of concern.

"Who's Ashalle?"

"She's my guardian. My parents died. A long time ago. Ashalle said they were killed by shemlen." She stared down at the water and kicked her feet, sending a long spray of water towards the other bank. "I don't remember them at all."

"How is Ashalle related to you?"

"She is of my clan. I used to call her mamae, but she's not, so I stopped." The thought made her sad; though she had forgiven her guardian's lie, she could never bring herself to call Ashalle 'mamae' again. In a way, she missed the innocence of her youth.

"What else do you know of your parents?"

"That's it. Ashalle doesn't like to talk about them very much." Sular appeared to consider this for a bit. Faleni couldn't think of anything else to say, and waited for his next question.

"Who were those boys I saw you talking to earlier?"

"That's Tamlen and Fenarel. They're my best friends." Faleni could, and did talk at length about her friends, and the man continued to smile at her babbling, though his blue eyes did glaze over slightly at points. She talked about her life, her clan, her hopes and her dreams. The sun was near setting when Sular finally stopped her.

"Da'len, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have let you talk so long. It's going to be too late to find wolves now." he said sadly. Faleni's face fell. "But perhaps we could try again tomorrow?"

"Well, maybe. I have lessons to go to first, or Paivel will get mad at me again."

"Just come to the Uthergal camp when you can." he asked, pleading. Faleni really wanted to search for wolves again, and she couldn't find the heart to say no. Still the thought of walking straight into the Uthergal camp scared her.

"But... I'm Sabrae..."

"We won't eat you. I don't know about your clan, but my clan only eats shemlen and other animals." he said smiling. Faleni laughed. He leapt up from the bank, his blond hair flopping down over one eye, and reached a hand down towards her. She grabbed it gratefully and hauled herself up. "Let's get back." Sular started walking, still holding Faleni's hand.

They followed the river back to the Arlathvhen, which proved to be a much shorter route than the one they originally took. They stopped just before the main entrance.

"Until tomorrow, Faleni Mahariel." Sular bent down and kissed the girl on the forehead. He ruffled her hair affectionately and headed towards Uthergal's site. Faleni waved goodbye to her new friend and skipped back to her camp. Most her clan was sitting around the campfire, partaking of their evening meal. She sidled in next to Tamlen, who handed her a bowl of stew.

"Where were you?" he whispered conspiratorially. "Fenarel and I covered for you, but I think Ashalle might suspect something."

"Nowhere." she said, as she dug in to eat. "Just looking around."


	8. Red Rover, Red Rover

The rest of the Arlathvhen flew by. Competitions and demonstrations were held in the morning, and though Sabrae didn't win any of them, they did respectably well. Gharth managed to come in second for knife-throwing. Faleni would then go to Paivel's lessons, where he would educate the len in history and lore. As much as she hated to go, he kept a sharp eye on her always and she never got the opportunity to sneak away. After lessons, she would race over to the Uthergal camp and meet up with Sular and the two of them would disappear in the woods together.

They never found wolves, but it had long since ceased to matter. Faleni was happy to be out in the woods, and Sular would teach her about the things they came across – flora and fauna. He showed her things to look for and what to avoid, and they made a game out of spotting tracks and identifying what made them. To Faleni, it was far more interesting than any story Paivel ever told.

One day they stumbled across a nest of baby birds. Sular found them first, and it was with great pride that he deposited one into Faleni's hands. She stroked the soft down and marveled at the small size of it. Sular said that a bird like that could be useful as a messenger bird if she trained it right. She named the bird Bora, and kept it the aravel at camp. By now Ashalle had been informed of Faleni's presence at Vhermas' demonstration and she seemed to be okay with the girl's new hobby. She still didn't know about Sular, but Faleni figured that if her guardian could have a few secrets, so could she.

The two of them continued to talk a great deal in their search. In many way Sular now knew as much about life in Sabrae as Faleni did, but the conversation wasn't entirely one-sided. Sular mentioned that his clan wandered a great deal of Thedas, though they were most frequently in Orlais. Uthergal never dealt with the shemlen directly, if they needed steel, the would raid small villages for it in the night. His clan believed that because the shemlen had taken so much from the elvhen that it was only right to take some of it back. They believed that the clans who actually traded with them were no better than the 'flat-ears' who lived in the cities. Faleni figured that might be why her clan and his didn't get along; Sabrae was a small clan and could not afford to antagonize the shemlen overmuch so raids were out of the question. There were a few members of the clan who were deemed worthy of working with them and even then they only ever dealt with very small villages or the odd traveling peddler.

He talked about his own family as well; he spoke of parents who killed in raids when he was a small len, and of a sister who became his guardian after their deaths. His sister was the pride of their clan and he admired her immensely. He spoke of a day not long after he became a scout in his own right, when he was informed by the Keeper that his sister was also killed by shemlen. His entire adult life was dedicated to being the best he could be in honor of her memory. Faleni felt bad for him – she had not experienced loss like that. He spoke of happier things as well, of a woman in his clan that he wished to marry, and their plan to do so once they had moved on from the Arlathvhen.

Faleni often caught him looking at her an odd way. She was never quite sure what to make of it, so she tried to ignore it. He patted her shoulder when she beat him at the tracking game and ruffled her hair when she made him laugh, which was a lot more often than she intended. She still had no idea why he chose to spend time with her, but her time with him made the Arlathvhen go quickly.

Soon it was the last, and the most important day. The Dalish got together as one people and shared between them the relics of Arlathan and the Dales. The Keepers, who had been holed up in their own camp since the second day, would finally make an appearance and facilitate the exchanges. For Sabrae, this was the day Marethari would receive a First.

Faleni was sitting in between Ashalle and Tamlen on a raised platform, a great view of the proceedings below. She scanned the crowd for Sular, he wasn't with the rest of Uthergal. She finally spotted him, having an animated conversation with one of the Keepers. They both glanced over to the stands and his eyes rested on her for a moment. She almost waved, but the remembered Ashalle sitting next to her and she stopped herself. He soon retreated to a seat in the midst of his clan and the Keeper he was talking to rejoined the others.

They stepped forward, and began the process of exchanging artifacts. As the purpose of this endeavor was to remind the clans of their history, each exchange of artifact was accompanied by a speech detailing the history of the object, and it's importance to the Dalish. The process took several hours and Faleni found herself drifting off a lot. She wished she was one of the younger len; the smallest ones were not expected to sit through the whole thing. She and Tamlen tried to amuse themselves by figuring out which of the mage-talented elves would join their clan; all of the apprentices, including the Firsts, were standing off to one side to watch the proceedings.

"I bet it will be someone older." Tamlen said, pointing at one red-haired male. "Like that one." Faleni squinted at him.

"Why doesn't he have his vallaslin yet?" she asked. The boy looked to be a bit older than Junar, but his face was bare. "I don't think they would give Marethari someone so old, and yet so unpracticed. Besides I would think they would give her someone young, so they can be brought up in our clan. Like her." She pointed to a blond girl, about the same age as Fenarel, who wore a deep scowl.

"She looks kind of sour." Tamlen said, making a face. "I don't think I'd want her in our clan."

"I don't think I would either." Faleni agreed. They continued to go on down the line, dissecting each and every possibility. They giggled so much that Ashalle had to shush them several times and remind them to pay attention. Finally the Keepers came to the end of the artifacts and moved on to the mages themselves. Sabrae wasn't the only clan who would receive a First, but they were the only ones who had gone for so long with only one mage.

Marethari stepped forward, along with a male with nearly black hair.

"Keeper Marethari, the Alerion clan is pleased to share our bounty with the Sabrae clan. It is a great honor to my clan and myself that you have chosen one of our len to be your First. Keeper Marethari, I present to you Merrill Linumin as your First." He beckoned to the row of mage children and it was the smallest one who stepped forward – a pale, dark haired girl who's large green eyes threatened to overwhelm her face. She stood straight and tall with her shoulders back proudly.

"Andaran atish'an Merrill." Marethari beamed at the little girl; in a completely unexpected move she dropped to her knees and held her arms wide. Merrill dropped her composure and sprinted the rest of the way into Marethari's embrace. The Sabrae clan whooped and hollered, welcoming the newest member of their clan and thanking Alerion for their gift.

When the furor died down, Marethari, Merrill and the other Keeper stepped back, and two more Keepers stepped forward. The Keeper that Sular had been talking to earlier pulled Marethari aside and started to whisper urgently to her. The Sabrae Keeper gave a start, and stared at the stands for a second, focusing directly on Faleni and Ashalle. The two of them then went to the bald Keeper of the Raleferin clan and started arguing in front of him. He looked back and forth between them, absolutely bewildered. He shook his head firmly and held his palms down flat in front of them. The two Keepers looked chastened, and then headed towards their respective clans.

Faleni was busy watching the next mage child join their new clan, and didn't notice Marethari standing in front of her and Ashalle.

"Ashalle, will you come with me?" she asked, her voice trembling with worry. A confused look crossed Ashalle's face, but she nodded and stood up to follow Marethari, who had already started back down. Faleni saw across the field that Sular was leaving with the other Keeper. She was about to get up and follow them when Tamlen whacked her in the arm; an insult that could not be left unpunished.

* * *

><p>Mathari led Ashalle to an aravel she didn't recognize; inside waited a blond hunter and Keeper, as well as Keeper Zathrian from the Raleferin clan. There must be a dispute between Marethari and the other Keeper then, for it was common practice to defer difficult problems to the oldest known elf in Thedas.<p>

"Why am I here?" she asked the assembled party.

"It has been brought to my attention that there has been a very unusual trade request, and it involves you, Ashalle. Keeper Lyra, would you care to explain the situation?" The bald elf bowed his head slightly to the unknown Keeper.

"Thank you, Zathrian. The situation is this; one of my clansmen, Sular Tumilin would like for Faleni Mahariel to be transferred to the Uthergal clan. We would be willing to share a chest from Arlathan in order to smooth this over." she stated calmly.

"Absolutely not!" Ashalle exploded, glaring at the rest of the room. Marethari laid a soothing hand on Ashalle's shoulder, and responded in a measured tone.

"Why does he want Faleni?" she asked.

"I believe that she is the daughter of my late sister, Vetya Tumilin. As that makes me her closest living relative; I wish to take over her guardianship." the blond hunter said, his blue eyes never leaving Ashalle.

"Why do you believe that?" Marethari asked kindly.

"Perhaps believe was the wrong word. My sister and I were very close, Keeper. She told me about Jurith Mahariel the moment she met him. I knew every time she snuck away from camp to meet him. I also knew what condition she was in when she left our clan for the last time. I was under the impression that both she and the child had died, but when I heard the name Mahariel again, I wondered. She's the right age and while the resemblance is slight, it is there. She also confirmed my suspicions herself. In short, Faleni is my sister's child and she belongs with me."

"How did you come to meet Faleni?"

"At Vhermas' lecture about wolf-taming. She was interested, and she was also alone. I offered to help her search for wolves, since clearly nobody in Sabrae cared enough to do so." Sular sneered. Ashalle stepped forward, raising her hand to slap him. Mathari squeezed her shoulder firmly, and she subsided, clenching her fists in frustration.

"And in return, you would hand over a relic to us for safe keeping?" Marethari directed the question at Keeper Lyra.

"What!" Ashalle exclaimed, rounding on her Keeper. "Marethari, you can't agree to this. You can't let them have her!"

"We lost a prominent member of our clan because Mahariel seduced her away from us. We are owed reparation." Lyra said, crossing her arms in front of her. That was too much for Marethari; she loosed her hold on Ashalle and went toe-to-toe with Lyra.

"It's Uthergal's stubbornness that lost us our Keeper! If you had only agreed to let her join our clan..."

"Vetya was necessary to Uthergal. We would've needed a hunter in trade." Sular stepped in to defend his Keeper.

"Sabrae is too small to spare hunters to a clan who sends them on suicide runs." Ashalle said, remembering the stories Vetya told her about her clan's raiding.

"They are only suicide runs for those who are as poorly trained as your fighters." Sular countered loudly.

"Oh really? Just how many of Uthergal have died in the past ten years because of skirmishes with the shemlen?" Ashalle was practically shouting now.

"Seth'lin!"

"Len'alas lath'din!" The volume in the aravel increased dramatically as the four of them shouted over the top of one another, quickly losing any semblance of civility and coherency. Zathrian watched them, his face an impassive mask. When they showed no signs of calming, he cleared his throat once and held his hands up. That was all that was necessary to make the arguing elves subside in embarrassment.

"Is Faleni aware of the relationship between you two?" He asked, turning to Sular.

"No, Keeper." He said quietly.

"But you want to be her guardian?"

"Yes."

"She is also the daughter of the late Keeper of Sabrae?" This question was directed at Marethari.

"That is correct, Zathrian." she answered.

"Did Keeper Mahariel have any other family?"

"In another clan perhaps, as he was not native to Sabrae. I don't know who they are though." Marethari shrugged.

"The len is not talented herself?"

"No, Keeper." Ashalle interjected forcefully.

"Then my decision is this; Faleni shall stay with Sabrae." There was a fresh explosion of protest, but Zathrian held a hand to continue. "From what I have gathered, it was Vetya who chose to go to Sabrae, and chose for her daughter to be born into the clan. The girl knows nothing about her relationship to Sular. Furthermore, Sabrae is indeed a small clan, and one that very few, if any, mages are born into. The blood is weak." Marethari started to protest, but she couldn't deny the truth of the matter. "Perhaps the daughter of a Keeper will help strengthen that. Finally, Lyra, if Marethari and Ashalle agreed to the trade, it would be one matter. They did not and there the matter should end." Both Sular and Keeper Lyra scowled, but did not argue. "Is there anything else?"

"No Keeper." The four of them chorused.

"Then we should go back to the ceremony." It was a subdued march back to the stands. Keeper Lyra's face was a tight mask, and Sular kept throwing angry glares at Ashalle. She didn't care, all she felt was relief, and she looked up in the stands for her little redhead. Faleni saw Ashalle and waved, then nudged Tamlen next to her and made him wave too. It made Ashalle smile. Faleni was hers, now and always. She sat down next to her adopted daughter and draped an arm around her shoulder, pulling her close. Faleni gave a token protest at such affection, but Ashalle ignored it; she wasn't about to let go of her anytime soon. Down on the ground, Keeper Zathrian stepped forward to speak.

"Vir Assan, Vir Bor'Assan, Vir Adahlen. We are the last of the elvhenan and never again shall we submit."

"We are the last of the elvhenan and never again shall we submit." the crowd repeated as one people.

* * *

><p><strong><em>AN: _**_This is definitely not the last of the story, just the end of this particular section, which already lasted far longer than I thought it would. Faleni still has a lot of growing up to do/trouble to get into. I don't own these characters - Bioware built the sandbox I play in**. **Thanks for reading, and please let me know what you think!_


	9. Follow the Leader

"Why do we have to ride in the aravel?" Faleni whined. "I want to go outside. Bora doesn't like being cooped up either." She held up the downy chick, who gave a startled cheep and fluttered out of her hands. Faleni quickly scooped up the bird and petted him softly, staring pleadingly at Ashalle.

"Neither do I." Tamlen complained, not wanting to be ignored.

"We're in Chasind territory da'len. It's too dangerous."

"Chasind?" Tamlen perked up at the unfamiliar word.

"Shemlen barbarians. They know the ways of the forest almost better than we do. And they won't hestitate to kill any Dalish they see."

"So why are we here? Why don't we go somewhere else?" Faleni asked.

"The Keeper has business with Asha'bellanar."

"Who?" the boy and girl chorused. Ashalle remembered then that Paivel was not fond of telling those stories, Fen'harel take him.

"A very powerful, and very old mage. No one quite knows how old she actually is, and the stories the shemlen tell about her are strange indeed." Ashalle shrugged. "She wishes to speak with Marethari in person. And no..." she put a hand up to stop Faleni's inevitable question, "... I don't know how she managed to get a hold of Marethari. Our Keeper apparently feels that it is not for the rest of the clan to know." Faleni sat back with a huff, and placed Bora on a nearby perch.

"Do we get to meet her?" Tamlen asked.

"No. The Keeper and Merrill will be the only ones to talk to her." Ashalle answered curtly. Both len groaned.

"Why does Merrill get to meet her? She's a baby."

"She's also Marethari's First, Tamlen." Ashalle said. Faleni rolled her eyes at her friend's stupidity.

"I still wish we could go outside. I want to show Tamlen my tracking skills." she said. Tamlen nodded a little too eagerly; he was a bit sore that she somehow had gotten ahead of him in training. Ashalle felt a pang of jealousy; though she never talked about it with Faleni, she knew where those skills came from. Sular had hit a nerve when he said that the girl was neglected; she had to tell herself everyday that it wasn't true, that she was doing the best she could for her daughter. It didn't always work. Still, she forced a smile on her face.

"When we get close to Asha'bellanar's territory, you will be able to play outside for a while. But not until then." Ashalle wouldn't admit it, but she was as anxious to get out of the aravel as the two of them. Between the chirping of the baby bird, Tamlen and Faleni's whining, and Divella's colicky babe the aravel was never quiet, and Ashalle found herself the victim of a non-stop headache.

Unfortunately for all three of them, they didn't get to safe territory for another day. It was a wonder that they managed to escape their confinement unscathed and with only minor bruised egos. It was with palpable relief that Faleni and Tamlen tumbled out of the aravel and into the daylight, not even minding the drizzling rain. Ashalle was right behind them, walking at a more subdued pace.

"Don't go too far!" She called after them.

"We won't!" Neither of them looked back as they headed straight for Fenarel's aravel. Ashalle sighed and went to find some other adults.

* * *

><p>"Where's Bora?" Fenarel asked when he finally met up with them. "I wanted to see him!"<p>

"I left him in the aravel. He'll just get squashed out here. We've got too much to do."

"Like what?" Tamlen sounded surprised, which made Faleni smile. She hadn't shared her plans with him yet. She didn't want anyone to hear them, so she pulled them away from the others.

"We're going to trail the Keeper." she whispered sotto voce.

"What?" The boys echoed just a little to loudly. Faleni shushed them frantically before continuing.

"I wanna meet Asha'bellanar, and following Marethari's the only way to do it."

"But she'll catch us!" Fenarel exclaimed.

"Not if we're careful."

"But Ashalle told us not to go too far." Tamlen admonished.

"We're not! We're staying in Asha'bellanar's territory. That's not far. But if you're too scared, you don't have to come." she taunted. Both boys looked down on the smaller girl, their jaws clenched. She had them; hook, line and sinker.

"We'll go. When are we leaving?" Tamlen said determinedly.

"Not for a bit. We have to wait until the Keeper and Merrill leave, and they're still here." She pointed off to their left where Marethari was speaking to Haysha, with her First standing behind her like a miniature shadow.

"So what do we do until then?" asked Tamlen. Faleni shrugged; she hadn't thought that part out. In the end it was Fenarel who came up with something to do - Master Ilen had helped him make his first real bor'assan and he was eager to show it off. They all took turns shooting it at a nearby stump, with one person keeping watch on the Keeper at all times. Faleni was drawing back the bow to shoot when Fenarel tapped her on the shoulder. Surprised, she accidentally loosed the arrow in Tamlen's direction and he had to duck to avoid getting hit. She rounded on Fenarel.

"What is it?" She snarled.

"The Keeper's gone, Faleni." Fenarel said, unmoved by her outburst. She let out an ear-piercing squeal of excitement.

"Did you see which way she went?"

"Of course." He sounded offended to be accused of missing something so important.

"Good. We'll wait a bit before taking off. Then we can just follow her trail." He nodded, and she handed him back his bow. They each shot off another round before Faleni decided enough time had passed, and then they set off in the direction Fenarel said the Keeper went.

The trail left by Marethari and Merrill was almost too easy to follow. Fenarel took point as lead scout but he almost needn't have bothered as the path was muddy and the two mages weren't even trying to hide their passage. Even Tamlen had no trouble spotting tracks. Still, they moved somewhat slowly so as not to overtake their quarry.

They were loud though; the boys hadn't yet perfected the art of silent movement through the woods. Fenarel at least tried, and had the decency to look embarrassed when he misstepped. Tamlen on the other hand made no attempt to walk softly and Faleni was beginning to regret bringing him along. After he cracked yet another twig, she had had enough.

"Watch where you're going!" She whispered fiercely.

"I am!" He complained. Both she and Fenarel shushed him. "I'm trying, anyway." he amended quietly, pouting.

"Try harder." Fenarel said.

"Yeah, someone's gonna hear us. And you're leaving a trail a baby can follow." Faleni lept up on a nearby stump to scan the path behind them.

"You guys could help you know." Tamlen whined.

"Fine. We'll go slower. Watch where I step, and follow me." Faleni said with a sigh.

"No fair, you're smaller than me – you just walk right underneath everything."

"Follow me then. Faleni can take point." Fenarel shoved Faleni to the front of the line, and placed himself directly in front of Tamlen.

"Fine by me." Faleni shrugged and started off again. Behind her Fenarel was moving very deliberately and Tamlen watched him like a hawk. The incidences of accidental noise diminished severely, but it wasn't long before the snail's pace got on Faleni's nerves. Bored, she increased the distance between herself and the boys. It wasn't long before they were completely out of sight, but Faleni was so focused on Marethari's tracks that she failed to notice.

Something odd caught her attention. She looked at the ground, and noticed an strange print. It was paw-shaped, but too small for a full grown wolf. She knelt on the ground to get a closer look. It was only one print, and fresher than the one left by Marethari. Faleni wondered what wolf would intentionally cross a person's path like that. A loud snap nearby interrupted her concentration, and she looked up, startled to see a pair of golden eyes looking straight at her. She stifled the urge to yelp. Blue eyes stared at gold for a long moment, until the creature came forward and materialized. Faleni found herself face to face with a midnight-black, half-grown wolf pup. It stared at her curiously, with no fear at all in the large, intelligent eyes. Faleni reached a hand out towards the pup, and made a soft clicking sound. The pup cocked it's head slightly, but made no move to come closer.

"Hello little one. Are you lost? Where's your mother?" she asked softly, not budging an inch. The wolf paid no attention the elf's beckoning hand and it's eyes narrowed to pinpoints. "Do you want to be my friend? We could hunt together." The pup wuffed in response; it sounded like laughing. If Faleni didn't know any better, she would've almost believed the wolf could understand her. It's gold eyes bore into her, and she had the odd sensation of being measured. It certainly was a beautiful creature; she had never seen a coat so glossy and dark before. If she could get it to come with her, Faleni was sure they'd make an excellent pair. The mumble of voices interrupted their reverie and they both looked toward the source of the noise. Faleni turned back to the pup, but it had already vanished back into the forest. She sighed and stood up. One of these days she would actually succeed in taming a wolf.

Within a moment she could the blond heads of Tamlen and Fenarel coming towards her. She glared at them, even though she knew they weren't being loud on purpose.

"Wait up, will you? We can't go any faster." Tamlen said, jogging heedlessly towards her. Fenarel wasn't far behind him, and he also looked a bit peeved.

"Sorry." she said, her tone indicating no such thing.

"How close do you think we are?" Fenarel asked.

"Not far, I think. See that break in the trees over there?" Tamlen pointed over their heads.

"Great! Now we gotta be extra careful." Fenarel took point again, and they moved inch by slow inch. Faleni was practically quivering with suppressed excitement, the closer they got to their destination. Finally they reached the edge of the tree lines and the break in the forest. It revealed a large swampy area surrounding a small cottage. Unfortunately for the three children, there was only one path of dry land to the cottage, and coverage was dismayingly scarce.

"What'll we do now?" Tamlen cried in dismay.

"We've come so far, we can't give up now!" Faleni patted his shoulder encouragingly, but he shrugged her off.

"We'll be caught! And then Marethari will exile us!"

"She wouldn't!"

"She would!" Tamlen and Faleni were in each other's faces. Feneral came up between them and put his hands over their mouths.

"Will you two be quiet? There's got to be a way." He glared at both of them, and then removed his hands. Very much chastised, the two smaller len separated and turned away from each other. They prowled along the edge of the trees of a long while, searching for a way to the cottage. Suddenly Faleni let out a squeak that brought the boys running.

"What is it?"

"I've got it! Follow me!" Faleni immediately dropped to her stomach and inched forward like a worm. Tamlen and Fenarel shrugged at each other and followed suit. As they creeped, Faleni's intention became clear. The grass surrounding the thin path to the cottage was just tall enough to hide three children on their bellies and there was only the slightest rustle to betray their position. It seemed an eternity, but Faleni finally led them to a wall of the cottage that had no windows. She used the wall to pull herself up to her knees, and pressed her ear to the wall. In the distance a wolf howled, overwhelming the muffled sounds coming from inside.

"Can you hear anything?" Tamlen whispered. Faleni shook her head and directed them around to the front of the house. Tamlen took the lead, and they made their way around to the front until they were right underneath a small window. They could hear voices, soft but distinct.

"What is this?" They heard Marethari ask. "Is this a Dalish artifact?"

"No," said a voice rough with age, "It's much newer than that, though no less important. I wished for you to see it, because I have a task for you." The voice paused for a moment before continuing. In that pause, the wolf started to howl again. "But first, I believe we have some unexpected visitors." the voice continued mildly.

"What?" Marethari sound alarmed. The three children's eyes widened in fear. They stood as one and sprinted madly towards the tree line. Tamlen and Fenarel, with their longer legs were back under cover in a split second, with Faleni struggling behind them. She could feel her lungs and legs burning as she sprinted towards her beckoning friends. She took a flying leap and dove back into the tree line, landing practically on top of Tamlen in the process.

"Keeper, I don't see anything." A high, childish voice rang out. Tamlen made an audible sound of relief, and both Fenarel and Faleni clamped their hands over his mouth. Everything was silent for a moment, except for the sound of a wolf howling.

"That's alright Merrill. Asha'bellanar says that everything's fine. Come back inside." They heard Keeper Marethari call. There were footsteps, and the sound of a door closing. Slowly Fenarel and Faleni released their friend.

"Well, what do we do now?" Tamlen asked.

"We go home." Fenarel said firmly.

"But we didn't get to see Asha'bellanar!"

"I don't think we're going to. Let's go." Fenarel started retracing their steps back to the aravels. Tamlen followed dejectedly. Faleni lingered behind, her gaze back towards the ramshackle cottage, hoping for just a glimpse of the woman they came to see. She swore to herself that she would meet her, one day. Faleni sighed, and ran to catch up with her friends.

* * *

><p><em>AN: I've been planning this scene for awhile - a fun interlude inbetween major plot bits. I hope you enjoy it. The usual acknowledgements and all that jazz. Happy New Year everyone!_


	10. Ring Around the Rosie

A soft chirp in her ear broke Faleni's reverie. She held a hand up to her shoulder and waited until she felt the prick of Bora's claws in her finger to bring him in front of her. There was a piece of parchment tied to his leg. She fed him a couple of seeds and he allowed her to untie the knot around his leg. Free of his burden and happy with his treats, he fluttered back to her shoulder. Faleni unfurled the parchment to read it. There wasn't much.

_Can't right now Faleni. Stuck with Master Paivel. Maybe we can play when he gives up on me._

_-Tamlen._

Faleni frowned. This is the fifth master Tamlen had been with since the hahren decided he was ready for an apprenticeship. The past four had all declared themselves a bad fit. Tamlen acted fine, but Faleni could tell that he was anxious about finding a mentor. She worried for him; after Haysha turned him away it was Faleni who burst into tears and sought Ashalle for comfort. Ashalle reassured the girl that Tamlen would eventually find his place and he was in no danger of being cast out.

She read the letter again. Paivel this time? That was unlikely to go well. Paivel wasn't a hunter anymore and so very stern whereas Tamlen was... not. At least it shouldn't take long for Paivel to figure out it wasn't going to work, and then Tamlen could go exploring with her again. It was slightly annoying that both of her friends had training all the time now and she was stuck with the smaller len. Or by herself, which was infinitely preferable.

"Faleni?" A voice asked sweetly. She looked up from Tamlen's note to see Keeper Marethari in front of her. Merrill was there too, looking for all the world like she wanted to disappear behind Marethari.

"Yes Keeper?"

"I need some plants to finish my medicines, but I lack the time to go to the woods and get them. Would you mind going with Merrill and gathering some for me?"

"Huh?"

"Merrill knows what I'm looking for, but I don't want her going alone." Marethari said, stroking the girl's dark head fondly as she clung even tighter to the Keeper. Faleni groaned.

"Does it have to be me?" She asked, a little sulkily; Merrill was a lot younger than her, and more than a little odd.

"You know the area well." Faleni started to protest that statement, but Marethari contiued to speak. "Don't pretend you don't know what I'm referring to, da'len. I'm aware you've been forbidden from leaving camp for the next moon, and I'm also aware that you manage to sneak away every chance you get anyway. At the moment, I'm willing to overlook things, but that could easily change." The Keeper stared pointedly at the somewhat-chastened girl. "So, will you help my First and I?"

"Yes, Keeper."

"Good." Marethari pried Merrill from her side and gently shoved her towards Faleni. "Enjoy yourselves, but don't forget about the task at hand."

"I won't, hahren." Merrill squeaked. Faleni rolled her eyes, but grabbed the smaller girl's hand, and took off. Marethari watched them go for a moment before turning back to her aravel.

"Let's get this over with." She could feel Merrill dragging her heels, and her fingers were digging painfully into Faleni's hand. This was going to be even harder than she thought. "Merrill, stop it."

"Faleni, I'm scared."

"Creators, save me." She said, echoing Ashalle's favorite phrase. They hadn't even left the aravels yet. "Merrill, it's totally safe. I promise."

"But... what if there are big animals? Or demons? Or... or... something? What if they want to eat us? What'll we do?"

"Have you ever been outside of camp without a hahren around?"

"No... they said I was too valuable. That I couldn't until I learned to control my magic better."

"Fine. Whatever. Look, we're not going far, we're going to stay very close to camp. All of the animals are scared of our fires, so they're going to stay very far away. And there are no demons here." She started to go again, but Merrill pulled her back with a suprising strength.

"Yes there are. Demons are everywhere." Merrill said, with a strange glint in her overly-large green eyes. Faleni shivered.

"So what?" She said, more bravely than she felt. "We still have to get Marethari's plants."

"But what if..." Merrill started again.

"Here." In one swift move, Faleni removed Bora from her shoulder and deposited him on Merrill's. The little bird gave a startled chirp but didn't move. "Bora'll protect you. If there's anything nasty, he'll be the first to know, and he'll warn you, so that we can hide. Okay? Let's go already."

Having the bird on her shoulder seemed to comfort Merrill, and the two girls finally left camp. As Faleni suspected, they didn't have to go very far before Merrill spotted something she needed and started grabbing handfuls of some plant.

"What's that?" Faleni asked curiously.

"Elfroot. It's good for healing." Merrill said, not looking up. "You can eat it on it's own, but it works better if you mash it up and make a potion out of it. Keeper Marethari's teaching me how to make potions. I'm not very good at it yet, though. I made one of the halla even sicker once. It threw up all over me. It smelled really bad. Have you ever had a halla throw up on you?"

"No."

"It wasn't fun. I had to take a really long bath. That halla won't come near me anymore. And I was just trying to help him too. I think if I wasn't going to be a Keeper, I'd like to take care of the halla. They're so pretty. My mamae was in charge of the halla in my clan. Or my old clan, anyway. This is my clan now. Still..." Merrill heaved a large sighed, "I miss my mamae sometimes." Merrill stared forlornly at the clump of elfroot in her hand. Faleni waited for her to start talking again, but the girl had gotten lost in her thoughts.

"Do you want to go back to your old clan?" Faleni asked, a little uneasily.

"Oh no!" Merrill perked up. "I really like Sabrae. Everyone is so nice to me. Especially Marethari. She's much more patient than my other Keeper. He said I talked too much. Do I talk too much?"

"Yes."

"I'm sorry. I'll be quiet. I think I've got enough elfroot though. We just need to get some spindleweed and some embrium still. I think I see some spindleweed over there." Merrill pointed to a thicket some distance away, and immediately went skipping off in that direction. Faleni trailed behind slowly. With her companion so preoccupied, she had some time to practice some of the things Sular taught her. Faleni went low to the ground, and started to search for tracks around Merrill, going out into an ever-widening spiral. There were definitely signs that animals had been there, but they were all very old and faint; they weren't going to be of much use to her. The only thing that was even remotely fresh was Merrill's footprints. Remembering another of Sular's lessons, she broke off a needled branch, and used it to erase signs of their passage.

"Faleni? Where did you go?" Merrill sounded a bit nervous. Faleni looked up, and realized that she couldn't see the small girl anymore.

"Not far, Merrill. Stay there, I'll come back for you." Faleni tossed her branch into a nearby bush. Something on the ground caught her eye and she bent down to take a look.

"Faleni?" Now she was starting to sound a little panicky. Faleni stood up; forgetting about the object on the ground and sprinted back to Merrill.

"What is it?"

"I've got all the spindleweed I need." Merrill hefted up a pouch. There was a thorny, skinny twig-like thing sticking out of the top. "I just need embrium, but I don't see any around here. It's supposed to grow near water though."

"And there's none by the river we've camped by? We'll have to go further downstream then."

"But..."

"It's fine. I've been out this way before, remember? I haven't been killed yet." Faleni grabbed the bag of spindleweed, and started walking south; towards the river, but even further away from camp.

"You'd look a lot different if you were dead, wouldn't you?" Merrill giggled. "You wouldn't even be here. I wonder what being dead is like. Paivel said that the ancient elves praticed uthenera, and that they would sleep for centuries. I wonder if being dead is similar to sleeping. That wouldn't be so bad; as long as I have good dreams, like dreams about mamae and flowers and things. As long as it wasn't a bad dream. I hate bad dreams, don't you? Sometimes I dream that I'm falling forever and ever..."

"Merrill?"

"What?"

"Shut up." Faleni said exasperated. Merrill bit her lip and immediately squealed in pain; having bit it a little too hard. Faleni shushed her, and the girl fell silent, her green eyes welling up with tears. The two of them walked on without saying a word. They eventually found their way to a part of the river, and, when the didn't see any embrium, contiued to follow it southward. There was all manner of flowers and plant life, but none of it seemed to be what Merrill was looking for.

"Maybe we should turn around and go back." Merrill piped up nervously.

"Uh-uh. The Keeper said we needed to get these supplies. She'll be mad if we don't."

"No she won't."

"Yes she will. She'll think it's my fault, and then I won't be able to leave camp for two moons. And I'll have to do all of her chores." Faleni made a face.

"You're not supposed to be out of camp anyway." Merrill pointed out. "And anyway, she won't get mad at you if I tell her it's my fault."

"That could work."

"Hey look, there it is!" Merrill said excitedly. "Now neither of us we'll get in trouble!" In front of them was a small patch of tiny red flowers. Faleni heaved a huge sigh of relief, which turned to dismay when she saw Merrill delicately picking the petals off one by one. This was turning out to be a much longer adventure than she thought. Even Bora had gotten bored, and flew off of Merrill's shoulder.

Faleni followed the bird with her eyes as he fluttered around the trees, slowly down towards the forest floor. He landed on the ground, and began to peck at something. Her eyes narrowed when she saw his landing spot; a depression in the dirt; similar in shape to the one she saw earlier. She didn't recognize it at all. It was long and skinny, like half of a halla-print, only much bigger and deeper. She traced the print with her finger, very much confused. There were more prints a bit further ahead, and Faleni walked alongside them. Whatever made them walked on two legs. Bora chirped and flew up to the trees. She heard a twig snap in the distance and she stiffened. There was another snap, closer this time.

"Merrill!" She hissed quietly. The smaller girl was humming, and apparently didn't hear her. "Merrill!" When there was still no response, Faleni ran back, and pulled the girl roughly upwards.

"Hey!" Merrill protested. Faleni muffled her with her hand. More snapping twigs, getting ever closer.

"We've got to hide. Now."

"Hide?"

"Yes." Faleni looked frantically around them, and then spotted a large bush. Without another word, she pulled Merrill into it. It was covered in thorns, but it was the only place large enough to hide two small children.

"Faleni, this bush is poking me."

"Quiet, Merrill." The noise was getting louder. Whatever it was, wasn't even trying to be stealthy. And it was making some odd grunting noises. Merrill apparently heard it too, and she had gone stock-still.

"'I saw them' she said. 'Heathen elves' she said 'Bandits, they want my jewels...'. Stupid woman, I say. There's nothing out here..." a gruff, masculine voice mumbled. Faleni was astonished to hear speech; the language sounded familiar, but the accent was like nothing she'd ever heard, and rendered the words almost unintelligible. A different clan of elvhen? She was tempted to go out and get a closer look, but something told her that it was a bad idea.

She saw the feet before anything else, as it came near the bush where they were hiding and stopped. Brown hide-covered feet. Faleni turned her blue eyes upwards, and then further up. More brown hide as far as the eye could see but then she saw the head, and she nearly gave herself away. It looked kind of like a male elf only bigger; taller and broader than even the tallest of her people. His ears were small and round, not like an elf's at all. Beside her, Merrill was also staring upwards, and shaking like a leaf. Faleni made a silent plea to the Creators that the man would not see them; that she had hidden the two of them well enough. It was an agonizingly long moment before the strange man snorted, and trudged off. Faleni released a breath she almost didn't realize she'd been holding.

The two of them waited until they could no longer hear anything before leaving the safety of the bush. The first thing Faleni did was examine the place where he stood in front of them. There were two large half-halla looking prints. So, that's where the tracks came from.

"Merrill, do you know what that was?" Faleni asked. She didn't expect an answer, not really, as Merrill still looked scared out of her wits. But it seemed to work, as Merrill shook herself and stared at the older girl.

"You've never seen the shemlen before?"

"That was a shemlen?" Paivel's stories made shemlen seem like monsters – giant, evil, murderous demons. She never expected them to look so much like the elvhen. "His people know our clan is here. He was hunting us."

"We gotta get back. Marethari has to know."

"Right." The two of them tore off, Faleni holding back her stride so that the smaller girl could keep up. They followed the river upstream, and it was with great relief that they finally spotted the aravels and their camp. They stumbled into camp, panting and out of breath. Ashalle spotted them first.

"Faleni? Where have you been?" She asked accusingly.

"We have to find Keeper." Faleni said, ignoring the question. A look of concern crossed Ashalle's face, and she herded the girls to Marethari's aravel. They burst inside, where she seemed to be cooking something.

"Ah good, just in time. I hope you got everything..." Marethari said gaily, and stopped. "What's wrong?"

"We saw shemlen." Merrill said. Faleni just nodded.

"Shemlen?"

"They know we're here." Faleni added. Marethari's eyes widened in surprise. "And they sent a scout to look for us."

"You specifically? Did they find you? Hurt you?" Marethari asked. Merrill shook her head. "No, of course not. Not that it matters. Not friendly then." The Keeper muttered something under her breath. "We must get ready to leave, go elsewhere."

"But we just got settled!" Ashalle exclaimed.

"And they will find us if we stay here. We can't take that chance." Marethari looked down at the two girls. "Thank you for telling me da'len. We have a lot of preparations to make. Faleni, Ashalle, you should get ready to go." Ashalle nodded and turned to leave.

"Here Keeper, we got the supplies you needed."

"Thank you, Faleni. I appreciate it. Although it might be sometime before I get to put them to use." Marethari took the prooffered bags, and turned back to Merrill. Faleni nodded curtly, and skipped out to find Ashalle waiting for her.

"Are you all right da'len?" Ashalle pulled her ward to herself in a protective embrace.

"I'm fine, Ashalle. Both Merrill and I are fine." Faleni said, wriggling out her grasp.

"Good. We've got work to do then." Faleni made a face, but followed Ashalle, musing on the shemlen. Paivel's stories would be very different from now on, she suspected, now that she knew what they looked like. They were so close to elvhen, yet so different. How could someone who looked so much like themselves be so evil, and cause so much trouble for the Dalish?

"Faleni?" Ashalle queried, startling her out of her reverie.

"Yes?"

"I thought I told you that you were forbidden to leave camp. What were you doing in the woods with Merrill?" It looked like the shemlen weren't her only problem.

* * *

><p><em>AN: Woohoo! Finally done with my show. It's been hard there for the last month, but now I'm free and back to writing. I've missed writing Faleni, it's good to be back in the world of the Dalish._


	11. Jinx

"Dareth shiral, lethallan! Paivel's teaching me tracking today!" Tamlen waved at Faleni, and headed over to the storyteller's aravel. It had been a week since Paivel took her friend on as an apprentice, and it still surprised her how well the two got on. It seemed to surprise a lot of clan, actually, that the perpetually sunny Tamlen and the stoic Paivel would mesh well together. Tamlen was still learning skills he needed to become a hunter, but he was also learning to take over for Paivel one day; apparently he had discovered an interest in Dalish history that the storyteller was doing his best to encourage. Faleni felt betrayed; she had never gotten on with Paivel and now every word out of Tamlen's mouth was 'Hahren Paivel this...' or 'Paivel that...'. It hurt.

"Da'len? Would you come with me?" A tall figure obscured her vision. Faleni looked up to see Haysha staring down at her. She looked severe; her face unsmiling, her nut-brown hair pulled back tightly. Faleni nodded, gulping. The older woman turned on her heel, and strode off without another. Faleni stood there confused for a moment before realizing she was meant to follow. She had to sprint to catch up. It didn't take long to figure out where they were headed; she could see the practice targets up ahead, all set up and ready. There were a number of the clan already there; a few of the older apprentices training on the bor'assan and some adults honing their skills. Junar was holding a contest against Ineria, one of the older apprentices and probably the next to get her vasselin, and was winning handily. Haysha walked over to one of the empty targets, and handed off her bow and quiver to Faleni.

It was the largest bor'assan Faleni had ever seen; most of the clan used light scouting bows; small and compact, meant for speed and accuracy, not for distance. Haysha's looked like it could shoot an arrow fifty meters and penetrate the skin of a bear. It was almost as tall as Faleni herself.

"Here da'len, stand behind that line, and try to hit the target with this." Faleni pulled an arrow from the quiver and struggled to get the large bor'assan into shooting position; her small hands were just barely able to curl around the limb. Haysha watched her impassively. Finally, she managed to get the thing aimed in the direction of the target and pulled the string; or at least she tried too. Haysha's bowstring was much thicker than even what Fenarel used on his light bow, and it took all of her might to bring it back while keeping the arrow strung. Finally as the line began to dig painfully into her fingers, she released it. The arrow flew only a few feet before clattering on the ground some distance from the target.

She looked at Haysha, who hadn't changed her expression or moved one inch. Faleni felt her cheeks grow warm with embarrassment.

"Well?" Haysha asked. That single word held so much scorn in it. Embarrassment burned away, only to be replaced by anger. This was not fair.

"I want another shot." Faleni heard herself saying. The older woman nodded. She drew another arrow from the quiver, and lifted the bow again. It was easier this time around, though her fingers were still stinging from the last time and the string dug even further into her skin. She loosed the arrow, and again it fell far short of it's mark. It was however, a lot closer than the first time. She glanced over to Haysha, and noticed with dismay that she had aquired an audience; everyone who had been practicing was now watching her; even Junar and Ineria had ended their contest. She squared her shoulders and looked Haysha directly in the eye.

"Again." She said firmly. Haysha's expression didn't change, but several of the other elves smiled. Faleni took the silence as assent, and turned back to the target.

It took her five more arrows to hit the target, and even then it bounced off harmlessly. By then her arms and hands were shaking so bad that she could no longer hold onto the bow up; she grounded the point and leaned heavily on the longbow for support. She searched Haysha's face for any sign of pleasure or displeasure, and got nothing.

"Irenia, would you lend Faleni your bor'assan?" The hunter said finally. The apprentice nodded, and handed Faleni the scouting bow she had been using, taking away Haysha's in the process. The shortbow felt lighter than air; though she knew for a fact that it was heavier than the toys she was used too. She drew one more arrow from the quiver and drew back, ignoring the sharp pain in her right hand. One last arrow, to make it count. She released the string.

The arrow zinged across the field and buried itself into the target. High, almost too high; another inch or so and she would have missed the target entirely. But she hit it. She crossed over and started to pull out the arrow, surprised how deep she had managed to get it in there. Faleni practically fell backwards yanking the thing out. A cheer went up from the crowd, and she threw a tired grin in their direction. Only Haysha was unmoved. She trudged towards the group, and handed Irenia her bor'assan back. Slowly the crowd drifted back to their own separate practices, leaving Faleni with Haysha.

"Here, hahren." She said, handing the arrow to her elder.

"Ma'serannas da'len. Come, we have much to do, and Marethari needs to see to your hand." Haysha's fist clenched around the arrow and turned back towards the main camp. Faleni's brow furrowed in confusion, and she looked down at her hands. Her right hand was covered in blood. There were welts and cuts on her fingers where she pulled back the string, over and over again. She hadn't noticed the blood.

It was Merrill who saw to her injuries; the Keeper was apparently off on errand. The small girl's eyes bugged at the sight of Faleni's injury, and she asked a number of questions that Faleni refused to answer. Haysha had disappeared while Merrill worked. She apologized profusely for not having the skills to heal magically, but she poulticed and wrapped the wound as skillfully as Marethari would have done. Faleni tested her hand; splaying her fingers, making a fist, over and over until she was satisfied that everything was fine. Haysha returned and two of them thanked Merrill, and headed toward an open part of camp.

There, Haysha pulled a dar'misu from her belt and handed it hilt first to Faleni. Faleni ran her finger along the ironwood blade; it had been whitled to a silky texture, and the edge gleamed with deadly precision; it was clearly one of Master Ilen's finest.

"Come at me." Haysha said, startling Faleni from her examination. The hunter stood in front of her in a defensive posture and completely unarmed. "What are you waiting for?"

The challenge was enough. Faleni changed her grip on the dar'misu so she was holding it like a whittling knife; like Ashalle had tried to teach her, and ran at Haysha with a yell. When she was within striking distance, Haysha stuck her foot out, causing the small girl to trip, and fall practically on her face. Faleni scrambled to stand up, but Haysha had already moved out of reach.

"Try again, da'len!" Faleni ran at her, this time a bit more cautiously. However, Haysha didn't even let her get close before leaping out of the way. Before Faleni could reorient herself; Haysha had moved to Faleni's back and thumped her on the head with her bare hand. The small girl whirled, ready to strike, but she was too late again.

This time, Faleni didn't rush; she sidled around, step by step, trying to figure out a way to get around. Haysha countered her movements, and they circled each other in a slow dance. She wasn't sure, but Faleni thought she saw a glint in the older woman's eyes.

She thought she saw a way. They had only been circling one way; as soon as she saw Haysha start to take the next step, she changed directions and sprinted towards the hunter. Haysha's first reaction was to try and go in the opposite direction, but she stumbled over her own feet in the process. Faleni peddled madly, and then launched herself upwards. And upwards and upwards. Faleni looked down. Haysha had caught her mid-flight and was holding the girl above her head.

"Nice try, da'len." There was a trace of amusement in the older woman's gravely voice. "See if you can do better."

Faleni continued to chase Haysha around until she was gasping for air, but she never got close to touching her. She finally flopped down on the ground, completely exhausted, and her hand still throbbing from the bow. Haysha sat down crosslegged next to Faleni and handed her a skin of water, which she took gratefully.

"So. What do you think da'len? About today?" There was genuine curiousity in Haysha's voice. Faleni gulped down the water, and thought for a moment before answering.

"I don't think I've ever worked so hard in my whole life. Your bor'assan is really heavy and you're much faster I am. I'm sorry hahren, that I've failed so badly." The words hurt coming out of her throat. She hung her head and stared at the water skin in her hands.

"Faleni... why do you think you've failed?"

"I couldn't hit the target, not really. I didn't even come close to you." She sighed unhappily.

"But you tried."

"Yeah."

"And you got a little better every time, right?" Haysha coaxed.

"Yeah."

"Da'len, what is the the Vir Tanadahl?" The question seemed to come out of nowhere, but Faleni was too tired to argue.

"The way of the Three Trees. Vir Assan – fly straight and do not waiver. Vir Bor'assan – bend and never break. Vir Adahlen – together we are stronger than the one."

"Faleni, those were not just tests of skill, although I must say, you did much better than I anticipated."

"I did? But..."

"Trust me on that one, da'len. As I was saying, these were not just tests of skill, but also ones of resolve, determination, and character. I wanted to see how well my apprentice followed the Vir Tanadahl, and in that you did admirably. You kept trying; despite the insurmountable odds – you did not give up when it was too hard. You showed no fear of what you were asked to do, and you trusted that I would not lead you astray. These are the qualities that make our clan stronger." Haysha pulled out another skin of water, and drank deeply from it while Faleni processed what was just said.

"I'm your apprentice?" She asked incredulously. Haysha sputtered, spraying water everywhere.

"Is that all you got out of that speech? No don't answer that, I know. Here I am, trying to tell you what a credit to the Dalish race you are, and you stopped listening after the word apprentice. Dread Wolf, why do I even bother? Yes lethallan, if it is amenable to you, I will be your master." For the first time all day, Haysha smiled; a giant grin that stretched from ear-to-ear. Faleni couldn't help it, she threw herself into Haysha's arms and hugged her tightly, prompting a loud laugh from the Hunter.

"Why me?" She asked, her mind racing with anticipation.

"Why not? You kind of remind me of myself at your age. You have the potential to become great. Besides, I have a feeling we can learn from each other – the best pairs do just that. I'd really like to know how you managed to get so good at disappearing." The older women's grin was sheepish; it was probably hard for her to admit that a child was better at something than she was.

"And can we tame wolves?"

"That, da'len, we'll just have to figure out together." Haysha stood up, and reached a hand to Faleni. "Come on, we should tell Ashalle the good news." Tired though she was, Faleni pratically skipped back to camp with her new master. She was going to be a hunter after all.


	12. I Spy

Faleni had never worked so hard in her life. To her surprise, Haysha rarely had her practice with the bor'assan or dar'misu. Instead her apprenticeship thus far consisted in chopping wood for the campfire and mucking out the halla pens. She also spent a lot of time running around the camp, and climbing and leaping over every object she could find. Occasionally Haysha would make her traverse the tops of the aravels carrying a pail of halla dung. According to her mentor, it was to all to build muscles and calluses that the girl simply didn't have yet. She wanted her pupil to be strong and agile, and apparently the best way to do that was heavy manual labor. At least it made Ashalle happy; Faleni was doing all of the chores for her.

That wasn't to say the girl never got to practice with weapons. Much like her during her test; Faleni would practice using Haysha's longbow as well as a much lighter scouting bow. The longbow, Haysha told her, would help her improve the distance and power of her shots, whereas the shortbow would work her speed and accuracy. Dar'misu technique was generally limited to stabbing carcasses, although Haysha also had her butchering animals for meals and whittling discs of wood for Ashalle. Of course, the animals Faleni butchered weren't fit for anything better then stew and Ashalle couldn't use half of the discs she was given, but she continued to be assigned such tasks anyway.

Faleni was skeptical about the chores and their impact on her training, but since she discovered that complaining about them generally led to even harder tasks, she kept mum. Her fingers bled, she was covered in large bruises, and every single part of her body ached. She'd collapse on her bed immediately after evening meal, and sleep the sleep of the dead. In the mornings, Ashalle would gently rub her shoulder until she woke up, and then send her off with Haysha again, a sad smile on her face.

That was most of her days now, but by no means all of them; there were also days that she spent learning from Paivel, Marethari, and the other craftmasters in order to broaden her knowledge base. Those were easier days. And the older hunter didn't lie when she said that she wanted to learn Faleni's sneaky ways, so there were times when the tables were turned. Unfortunately, this proved to be another stumbling block; Faleni was not used to being the teacher, and since stealth was nearly instinctive for her, explaining it to another person was a challenge. So far she had tried to show Haysha what to do, but the older woman had so far been unsuccessful in picking up the trick. Faleni would have to figure it out and hopefully soon.

There were days too, when all of the hunter apprentices would come together and training would be done as a group. It usually took the form of contests and games, intended to evaluate strengths and weaknesses, and foster teamwork. Faleni enjoyed those days, because as busy as she was, she didn't spend a lot of time with Fenarel and Tamlen anymore. Today was one of those days.

To her surprise, the task for today was a variation on the old hunting game they used to play. They were split off into groups of three; one was to leave a trail for the other two – working as a pair – to follow. The difference in this game was that the prey stayed on the move, and the hunters had to move as silently and carefully as possible. All three would carry bows in case they stumbled upon something they shouldn't have. The hahren would follow along behind to check their progress. Faleni was teamed up with Ineria and Terath, the oldest of the apprentices, and she would be the prey.

"Not Faleni!" Terath whined. "We'll never be able to find her!" Faleni stuck her tongue out at him. She didn't particularly like Terath, and was always happy to show him up. Haysha sighed exasperatedly.

"Da'len, you have to leave a trail for them to follow. And yes..." She said, anticipating Faleni's inevitable question. "... you can make it as difficult for them as you would like. You just can't make it impossible." Faleni shrugged. Fine by her. Haysha nodded to her, and she took off into the forest. She wouldn't have much time before Irenia and Terath were after her, and she needed to make it count. She sprinted quickly in a straight line, not bothering to hide her tracks. That would come later, when she had put enough distance between her and her pursuers. When she could no longer hear or see the camp, she slowed down and whistled once before settling down to work. She had to work fast.

Her plan was to leave them a false trail; sending them off in one direction while she traveled in another. Mindful of Haysha's instructions, her real trail would have clues as well but they would be far more difficult to spot. The false one, she hoped, would be far more tempting. She stepped on a fern, crushing it underfoot. She continued in the same direction, occasionally leaving little signs that she had passed through. Not too far though, she needed to be able to get back. There was a flutter of wings, and she smiled. Bora flew down to her hand and chirped at her until she gave him a berry. Haysha didn't always approve of her use of the bird, but Faleni didn't care. She pulled out a few strands of her copper hair, and curled one of his feet around them.

"There." She said, pointing. "Fly, bush." Bora only knew simple commands, and he wouldn't keep his grip on her hair for long, but she was counting on that. If she was lucky, she could keep Irenia and Terath going for ages in the wrong direction. With Bora set to his task, she doubled back on her trail going some distance before haring off into another direction. This time she zigzagged and turned frequently, only occasionally leaving subtle hints; just enough so that they could see it. In many ways, this was harder for Faleni than not leaving any signs at all; she actually had to think about her movements instead of just stalking through as she normally did.

It got to about midday, and she still couldn't tell if Irenia and Terath were on her trail. The only thing she knew was that Haysha, who was out there somewhere, hadn't ended the game yet. Still, she was getting hungry and with nobody hot on her heels, it was probably safe to stop for a bite to eat. There was a tree with large, exposed roots nearby; she could hunker down in the shadow of it and eat in peace.

Bora came back while she was gulping down the hunk of dried bear meat she carried with. He chirped at her for a treat, so she gave him a small nut and scratched him on his head. She didn't realize how tired she was until she sat down; forcing herself to leave a trail was harder than she thought. She took a swig from her water pouch and contemplated her surroundings. It was peaceful in the forest; with the wind whispering delicately through the trees and the sounds of wildlife about their daily business. Faleni's eyes began to droop, and before she realized it, she had fallen asleep in the crook of the tree.

She didn't know how long she slept; it was still light out when a soft growling sound woke her up. Faleni sat bolt upright and stared straight into a pair of eyes surrounded by grey fur. A wolf. A big, full grown wolf. It's teeth were slightly bared and there was drool dripping from it's mouth. She could feel it breathing hot air on her face. She couldn't move. She had no idea where Bora was, she only hoped that he was safe. And where was Haysha? She fumbled at her belt. No knife, not today, just her bor'assan and some arrows. There was no space, and what could she do with her little bow? The wolf leaned in closer and closer. Faleni was mesmerized by it's long, yellow, dangerous teeth.

There was a twang, a whistle, and a thud. The wolf yelped in pain and pranced backwards. Faleni saw an arrow sticking out of it's chest. The first arrow was followed by several more in quick succession. The wolf went down with a howl, bleeding from several deep wounds. Faleni didn't move, struck dumb by her encounter. Something stepped on the root above her, throwing her in even darker shadows.

"Faleni? Are you okay? Terath! Come here!" Faleni tilted her head back to look at the one casting the shadow. Irenia looked down at her with concern. "Did the wolf get you, lethallan?" Irenia said as she jumped down to examine the smaller girl.

"I'm fine. You found me just in time." She batted away Irenia's hands, and struggled to get up. "I think that wolf was about to eat me." She tried to sound brave, but her voice wavered, and she felt shaky all over. Irenia stood back and grinned.

"I wouldn't have found you if it wasn't for the wolf. Sit down, I'm not entirely sure the wolf's totally dead yet." Irenia helped sit Faleni on the root, and then went over to examine the wolf. She prodded it with her foot, and when it didn't move, she pulled an arrow out of her quiver to slit the creature's throat. Terath came running up, completely out of breath.

"Hey, did you find Faleni? That other trail was a dead end so..." He trailed off as he took in the sight of the two girls and the dead wolf. "Fen'Harel! What happened?"

"I...I fell asleep." Faleni said, her cheeks burning red with embarrassment. "When I woke up, the wolf was standing over me. Irenia saved me."

"Where's Delwyn? And Vinell, and Haysha?" Terath asked, his brow furrowing in concern. "They should've been here."

"I'm almost glad they weren't." Irenia murmured under her breath, her entire focus on the wolf. "Lethallin, could you give me a hand with this?" Terath shrugged, and left Faleni to go help the older girl. Faleni got up to help them as well, it looked like a rather large wolf. Between the three of them, they managed to carry it. They didn't get more then a few steps when the three adult hunters came running up to them.

"Oh thank the Creators you're safe." Haysha cried. "I'm sorry Faleni, I lost track of you when you doubled back on the false trail."

"It's all right hahren. Irenia killed a wolf, and managed to track me." Faleni grinned. The three adults looked at the older girl in shock.

"You killed the wolf? By yourself?" Vinell asked his apprentice.

"Yes hahren." Irenia said, her eyes lowered. Vinell laughed, a joyous bray.

"Da'len... no... not a da'len anymore. You're a full hunter now, Irenia." A big grin spread across the old man's face. "Come on, let's get this carcass back to camp."

"Yes, Hahren. And... ma serannas." Irenia smiled, and shifted her weight. She and Terath followed their masters back towards the camp, still carrying the dead wolf. Haysha started to follow them, but Faleni stopped her.

"Hahren... I fell asleep. The wolf wouldn't have gotten near me if I wasn't paying attention." She looked down at her feet.

"That's alright da'len. It wouldn't have gotten near you if I hadn't lost you. It's just as much my fault as yours. You're young. Leave the guilt to those who can bear the weight. And good has come of it. Irenia's a full hunter because of you."

"I guess that's true." Faleni shrugged. She still felt like a failure, mostly. An odd sound caught her ear. "What's that noise?"

Haysha cocked her head, and listened for a bit to the forest.

"I don't... is that whimpering?" She and Faleni exchanged looks and followed the direction of the noise. The sound seemed to be coming from the direction of a very large fern. Haysha signaled for Faleni to stay back as she lifted up one of the large fronds. She gasped loudly, startling her charge.

"What is it?" Faleni asked, curious, and a little bit nervous.

"Come take a look, da'len." Haysha held back the frond, and beckoned Faleni to come closer. Underneath the fern was a pair of little brown wolf pup, huddled together and whining for their mother. Faleni looked from the pups to Haysha, completely astonished.

"Looks like we've found our wolves, Faleni."


End file.
